The Hunt For Torchwood: Antarctica
by cheri1
Summary: Sequel to The Widow's Web and first in the Hunt For Torchwood series 10 Rose Jack Torchwood Crossover The Doctor and company goes to Antarctica searching for a hidden lab and find one buried deep underneath the ice. FINISHED
1. Prologue

A/N: This is the sequel to The Widow's Web and part of an ongoing series of stories called The Hunt For Torchwood. Enjoy!

Prologue

"What's this about?" Ianto asked as he followed Gwen, Owen and Tosh through the hub.

"Jack's back." Gwen said.

"He is? I've been sitting at the front desk and I never saw him come in." Ianto replied.

"Trust me, he didn't use a conventional way this time." Owen said.

Ianto frowned, but said nothing more.

He entered into the main room and stopped short when he saw Jack standing in front of a blue box.

"Evening, Ianto." Jack said waving.

"What is this police box doing here?" Owen asked, pointing to it.

"This is a TARDIS." Ianto said.

"A what?" Gwen said.

"A TARDIS. T-A-R-D-I-S, stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space." Ianto explained. "It's a combination space ship and time machine. I remember hearing about it when I was working at Torchwood One. It belongs to the Doctor."

They looked at him.

"Doctor who?" Owen asked.

"He's known only as the Doctor." Jack said.

"That's right." Tosh said. "I've met him before."

Owen and Gwen looked at her.

"You have? When?"

"When I was a medical examiner at Albion Hospital, I examined an alien corpse there. That's the only time I met the man."

"But, the Doctor…isn't he Torchwood's sworn enemy? The reason Torchwood was started in the first place?" Ianto asked.

Jack glared at him.

"Yes, but Torchwood doesn't know him like I do. He's not a threat." He said.

"But, isn't he the one who put Torchwood One out of commission?" Ianto said. "I was there that day, you know, when the Cybermen were attacking the building and killing people and they tried to make Lisa…"

He caught himself and averted his eyes. The others looked at each other, but said nothing.

"Look, despite all the rumors and lies that Torchwood has put out over the years about the Doctor, he is not the evil bastard they made him out to be. If you all step inside the box and meet him, I think you'll see for yourselves what he's really like."

They looked at each other again for a moment and then they moved slowly towards the police box. They stopped just outside the door and looked at Jack.

"Go ahead." He said pointing to the door.

Owen looked at Ianto.

"After you." He said to Ianto.

"Me? Why me?" Ianto asked.

"You know the guy."

"No, I don't, I just know what was in the Torchwood files." He protested. "Besides, Tosh knows him better than I do, why don't you make her go first?"

"Just…go." Owen said impatiently.

Ianto glared at him. Sighing, he put his hand on the door and opened it a crack. Sticking his head in, he saw a man and a woman standing in front of a console."

"Hello." The man said. "I'm the Doctor and this is Rose Tyler. You are Ianto?"

"Um, yes I am." Ianto said stepping inside.

The Doctor smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Ianto." He said extending his hand as he walked towards him. "Jack has told me a little about you. I understand you were at Canary Wharf the day the Cybermen and Daleks attacked."

"Yes, I was." Ianto said shaking his hand.

"Jack also told me about Lisa." The Doctor said. "I'm so very sorry for what happened to her and to all the other innocent people working there that day."

"Yeah." Ianto said softly.

"Hi, I'm Rose." Rose said coming up beside the Doctor.

Ianto smiled at her.

"Nice to meet you." He said.

"You too." She said shaking his hand.

The Doctor looked at him.

"So, are you the team then? I mean I was under the impression there was a group of ya." He said.

"No, there's more…they just won't get in here…"

He turned and walked to the door as the Doctor looked at Rose and shrugged. He leaned outside the door speaking to the others and then pressed himself up against the railing as the others came in.

"Ah! This is more like it." he said as they looked around bewildered.

Jack came in behind them and pointed to each of them.

"This is Gwen Cooper, Toshiko Sato and Owen Harper," He said "And Ianto Jones, of course."

"Pleasure to meet all of you. I'm the Doctor and this is Rose Tyler." He said smiling at them.

"No, you're not!"

Everyone looked at Tosh.

"I'm sorry." The Doctor said.

"You're not the Doctor."

The Doctor looked at Rose and looked back at her.

"Yes, that's me, I'm the Doctor."

"No, you're not. I've met the Doctor and you're not him."

The Doctor frowned.

"You met me, when?" he asked.

"I met HIM working at Albion Hospital. I was examining this alien and…"

"OH!"

Tosh jumped when the Doctor yelled and stuck his finger out at her.

"YES, I thought you looked familiar! I'm sorry I took off and left so quickly, but…"

"Look, buddy, you are not the Doctor." Tosh said emphatically. "You don't even look like him!"

"Well, that's one of the things I'll explain as we get ready for our first mission."

He sauntered over to her.

"And for the record, the alien was a cute little pig in a space suit. The poor thing had been altered as part of a cruel hoax by the Slitheen." He said.

Tosh's mouth dropped open as the Doctor sauntered back to Rose.

"Now," he said turning when he reached Rose's side. "As I said, I am the Doctor, I know certain members of your team have trouble believing that at the moment, but the reason why I appear different to her will be explained in due time. Right now, I have a favor to ask all of you."

The group looked at each other.

"Yeah, what favor?" Owen asked.

"I believe Jack told you that he was heading into London to search for a missing friend, well…I am that friend."

They glanced back at Jack who nodded. They looked at the Doctor.

"Jack just helped me and Rose defeat a Racnoss hybrid who called herself the Widow."

"A what?" Gwen asked.

"Great, big, ugly, spider bitch. Nasty temper. Killed me and tried to rape the Doctor." Jack replied.

Their eyes widened.

"A great, big, bloody spider tried to rape you?" Owen asked in disbelief.

"Weeeeeeell, actually, she didn't get quite that far. But she did web me to the wall and sliced my cheek open with her talons, hence the scars on either side of my face." He said gesturing to them. "Scars which in due time will fade, thank Rassilon. But anyway the point is this Racnoss was a human hybrid made by Torchwood."

They looked at each other.

"Wait, we never made any Racsoss/human thingy." Owen said.

"RacNoss. And I know you didn't. It was made by another branch of Torchwood. A twisted scheme to make money to build a bigger lab so they could continue their operations."

"Okay, what has that to do with us?" Tosh asked.

"That Torchwood lab was put out of commission by the Widow when she killed all the personnel working there. But Rose and Jack and I were left to deal with what they did and this was the second time I had to put a stop to one of their schemes. Canary Wharf was the first. I'm tired of cleaning up Torchwood's messes and watching as they endanger the lives of innocent people."

He looked at Ianto.

"Like your girlfriend." He said to him.

Ianto lowered his eyes as the others cleared their throats.

"I trust you lot because I trust Jack. He has given his assurance that you are on the level and that's why you will be spared."

They looked at each other.

"Spared what?" Gwen asked.

"Spared my wrath." The Doctor said. "I'm going after Torchwood with a vengeance. Rose and I want to put them out of commission permanently. Jack has agreed to help and I'm asking for your help as well."

They turned and looked at Jack.

"You want to shut down the other Torchwoods?" Owen asked.

"Yes, I do."

"Um, not to split hairs here, but isn't that biting the hand that's feeding us?" Owen said. "I mean, we are a part of Torchwood, you know."

"We are not like the other Torchwoods. We're different. The Doctor's right. The other Torchwood branches are irresponsible and reckless and the whole universe will be safer if they're put out of commission. I saw more of the Widow than I cared to. She killed me once and she almost killed them. The Doctor almost lost Rose that day at Canary Wharf because they allowed the Cybermen and Daleks to come through the void and she almost got sucked back into the void with them when he reversed the process. Who knows what they're planning next. For the sake of the planet, Owen, we have to turn against them."

Owen looked back at the Doctor.

"So, you want us to come with you and help find these other Torchwoods?" he asked.

"Yes, Rose and Jack and I believe that there may be hidden labs scattered throughout the world. We want to find them and destroy them for good."

"And if there aren't any hidden labs?" Gwen asked.

The Doctor smiled.

"Well, you get a nice little holiday traveling with me." He said, shrugging.

They looked at Jack.

"How about it, team? Are you in?" he said.

They looked at each other for a moment. Ianto looked at Jack.

"I'm in. After what happened to Lisa, I don't want Torchwood tearing apart any more lives." He said.

"Great!" Jack said. "Tosh, Gwen, Owen, how about you guys?"

"I'm in, Jack." Gwen said.

"Me too." Tosh added.

Jack looked at Owen.

"Owen, buddy, you in?" he asked.

They all looked at him.

"Yeah, I'm in." he said after a moment. "It sounds like a wild goose chase to me, but hey wouldn't be the first nutty thing we did."

"Gee, Owen, your confidence in me is overwhelming." Jack said rolling his eyes.

He shut the door as the Doctor slapped his hands together.

"Great, so first things first, before I fill you all in on everything, there is the matter of my appearance and why Tosh doesn't recognize me now. Well, Tosh, there's this thing I do called regeneration…"


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Owen sighed as he brought the last of the equipment in the TARDIS.

"That oughta do it; I think we brought everything but the kitchen sink and Myfawny."

The Doctor looked up from his monitor.

"Myfawny? Who's that, another member of your team?"

Myfawny is their pet pterodactyl." Rose said walking past him.

The Doctor's eyes bulged out and he looked at Jack standing by the doorway.

"You have a bleedin' pterodactyl for a pet?" he asked.

"Yup, we do."

"Oh, well bring her along; we can sic her on the scientists." He said.

"No, Doctor," Rose said walking back the other way carrying some of the equipment. "We are not bringing a pterodactyl on board."

"I let you bring Mickey on board!" he protested.

He gave her an innocent look when she turned and glared at him.

"What? Mickey said he was the tin dog, that makes him a pet, doesn't it?" he said shrugging.

He chuckled when Rose rolled her eyes and went out of the room.

Gwen walked through the front door.

"I think we got everything, Jack." She said.

"Great, everybody in?"

He looked around at his team scattered around the room.

"All in, Doctor." He said.

"Great, let's get this show on the road then."

He looked around the room.

"Blimey, this is the largest number of companions I've ever had at one time. I oughta be charging membership fees." He said.

He cleared his throat as Rose came up beside him.

"Right, I've been looking through Torchwood's top secret files like the naughty little boy that I am and I've found a couple of leads I want to pursue." He said.

Owen raised his eyebrow.

"You mean you actually have found some more of these secret hideouts?" he asked.

"I have." The Doctor said triumphantly. "I found a memo from the lab under the flood barrier to another lab that mentioned the Widow in it and I'm setting the coordinates now."

"And this other lab is in…" Owen asked.

He smiled.

"Antarctica."

Everyone looked at each other.

"Come again, I don't think I heard you right." Owen said. "It sounded like you said we're going to a bleedin' frozen wasteland so we can search for a hidden lab."

"No, actually, I said we're going to Antarctica, but close enough." The Doctor replied.

Owen looked back at Jack.

"Trust the man, Owen, he knows what he's doing." He said.

"I bleedin' hope so, because I don't fancy freezin' my arse off looking for this secret lab of theirs." He said.

The Doctor started up the TARDIS.

"Rose, show them to the supply closet and get them some winter gear and bring me some as well, please."

"Right." Rose replied.

"Come with me." She said to the group.

They looked at each other and followed her into the back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Here we are, gang, Antarctica." The Doctor said zipping up his heavy winter coat. He had put on a pair of thick woolen pants and a heavy sweater and boots along with everyone else. He looked at Rose who was starting to put on a hat and long scarf.

"Don't do that yet. I have something that will give us even more protection." He said.

Rose nodded and laid the hat and scarf down on the console as the Doctor went past her and left the room. He came back a few minutes later carrying a large white jar in his hands.

"This," he said showing it to everyone in the room. "Is an ointment that is specially designed to protect the skin in sub-zero temperatures. I want everyone to put this on their face and any other exposed skin. It will keep you from getting frostbite out there."

He opened the jar, dipped his fingers in and got a little of the jelly-like substance on them. He began to rub it on his face as everyone came up and followed suit.

"The clothes have also been specially designed to withstand sub-zero temperatures, so there really should be no problem with frostbite or hypothermia." He said. "I've been to several ice planets and worn this gear and I didn't have a bit of trouble. Now, each of us will carry a rucksack. I have them ready and they're sitting over there by the back door. I've given everyone an extra pair of clothes; some dehydrated food, a flare gun, a little tin of the ointment and a weapon in case we get separated from each other. Rassilon willing, that won't happen, but it's better to take precautions."

He finished applying the ointment.

"Everyone set?" he asked.

Everyone nodded.

"Fantastic." He said closing up the ointment and setting it under the console. "Well, let's get out there and bag us some renegade scientists! Allons-y!"

He walked over, grabbed a rucksack along with everyone else and put it on his back. He quickly unzipped his coat, checked that his screwdriver was in the inside pocket and nodding, zipped it back up. He reached into the side pocket, brought out the hat and scarf and donned them as everyone else did the same. Once they were all bundled up, the Doctor gestured for them to follow him and they walked towards the front door. He opened it up and looked out.

"All clear," he said. "Follow me."

He went out followed by Rose, Gwen, Jack, Ianto and Tosh. They blinked as the swirling winds sprayed snow into their eyes. Rose grabbed the Doctor's arm and he looked back around at her as she came closer to him.

"You okay, Rosebud?" he asked, concerned.

"Yeah, just give me a minute to get used to this and I'll be fine." She said.

The Doctor nodded and turned his head back around.

"Hooooooooly shit!"

Everyone turned around and saw Owen standing in the doorway.

"Owen, come on, let's get going!" Jack said.

"Not on your bleedin' life! It's colder than fuck out here! I'm staying in this thing where it's warm!" he said.

"Owen, get out here now, that's an order!" Jack yelled at him.

"You're insane, the lot of ya!" Owen said. "We're in the middle of bleedin' nowhere Antarctica trying to find a lab under tons of ice and snow and…"

He jabbed his finger at the Doctor.

"An alien is leading us!" he finished.

"I know what I'm doing!" the Doctor shot back.

"Oh yeah, well, where's this lab then cause I don't see any evidence any human has ever set foot here!"

"It's…around." The Doctor said.

"Around? That's as accurate as you can get? Around? We're getting lost and possibly freezing to death on an "around"?"

The Doctor sighed.

"My TARDIS can detect radiation and electrical impulses. It picked up evidence of electrical activity in this general vicinity. She can't be sure exactly where it is since more than likely it is under the ice and snow, but it should be close. My sonic screwdriver can also pick up electrical activity so I can use it to lead us to the exact location. Now will you please get out here and close the door before snow starts drifting into my ship? I know what I'm doing, just trust me!"

Owen sighed. Shaking his head, he shut the door and followed along behind everyone else as they set off in search of the lab.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hang on, will ya, Doctor?"

The Doctor looked at Rose as she tugged on his sleeve. It had been nearly a half hour since they started walking and they had been trudging through the snow trying to fight the blowing winds and avoid slipping on any icy patches. The Doctor was using his sonic screwdriver periodically to check where the electrical activity was coming from.

"You alright?" he asked her with concern in his eyes.

"I just need to rest a minute. I'm tired." She said."The cold is getting to me."

"Same here." Gwen said. "I'd like to rest too for a few minutes."

"Okay, there's a huge rock over there, you can hunker down on the leeward side and keep the wind out of your faces. I'll walk around the general area while you guys are resting and see if I can pick up any signs of life."

Rose nodded.

Weary, they walked over to the large rock and squatted down behind it.

"I won't go far, so if you need me, just yell for me." He said.

They nodded and huddled together sharing their body heat as the Doctor walked around the rock and continued to search.

"I'd give anything for a mug of hot chocolate right about now." Gwen said shivering.

"I'd kill you for that mug of hot chocolate." Jack said.

Gwen looked at him. He winked and she slapped him on the arm as he chuckled.

"I hope he finds the location of the lab soon, I'm chilled to the bone even with the added protection of the clothes." Tosh said.

"Still, think how bad it would be if we weren't wearing them." Ianto added.

"Ugh, I don't even wanna think about that." Tosh replied.

"Keep your spirits up, team; we'll make it through this." Jack said.

"I sincerely hope so, because if we die out here in the middle of nowhere, I'm kicking your arse around Heaven for all eternity!" Owen said.

"That's the spirit, Owen. Think positively!" Jack said.

He laughed as Owen gave him a playful punch on the arm.

Rose smiled underneath the scarf wrapped around the lower half of her face. She liked Jack's friends. She could tell they were all good people. It was nice to know there was a Torchwood out there that had its heart in the right place. She leaned back against the rock wrapping her arms around her body as Gwen, Tosh and Ianto moved in closer to her.

"ROSE!"

Rose's eyes widened when she heard the Doctor calling her. As the others quickly moved back, she jumped up and looked over the rock.

"Doctor!" she yelled panicked.

"Rose, look at this!"

The Doctor came up over a nearby hill followed by a fuzzy baby penguin.

"There's a whole mess of them just down this hill and this cute little bloke followed me!" he said, delighted. "I think he thinks I'm his mum. I'm gonna take him back to the TARDIS when this is all over and call him Arthur!"

"Doctor, you are not keeping a bleedin' penguin!" Rose yelled back as the others stood up to watch.

"I let you keep Mickey!"

"For Christ's sake, will you shut up about that? I get tired of hearing that line every time you wanna bring some strange animal into the TARDIS!"

"Arthur is not strange! He's adorable!" the Doctor said. "Look!"

He stopped and watched Arthur as he waddled over to the Doctor's boots, climbed on, turned around and nestled himself on them.

"AAAAAAAAAAAW!" the Doctor said staring down at contented little Arthur as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. "He's just too cute! See, Rose, he thinks I am his mum! I love him!"

Rose dropped her head down onto the rock and muttered to herself as everyone else laughed. She lifted her head up and looked back.

"Will you please excuse me for a moment? I have to talk something over with my significant other." She said.

She walked around the rock ignoring the snickering behind her.

"Doctor," she said walking up to him.

"Shhhhh, Arthur's sleeping." He said pointing down at the fuzzy puffball on his boots.

"Um…Doctor, Torchwood, remember? You wanted to go find this lab so we could put it out of commission?" Rose said. "Are we still doing that or are we gonna watch you play penguin nanny now?"

The Doctor sighed.

"Of course I wanna find Torchwood." He said.

"Well, I don't know about everyone else but I wanna get going. I'm feeling better now and I'd rather go off and find the lab and get warmed up. So, could you send Arthur back over the hill before his parents wonder where he's gone to?"

The Doctor stared down at the sleeping penguin.

"Oh, all right." He said sadly.

Rose rubbed his arm as she heard him let out a sad little sigh. He reached down to the baby penguin.

"Come on, Arthur, ya gotta get off my feet and get home to your real mum and dad." He said nudging the penguin. "Wake up, little guy and…OW! BLOODY HELL!"

"What, Doctor?"

The Doctor jerked his hand back up and stared at it in anger.

"That little bastard bit me! Hard! I could feel it through my bleedin' glove!"

"Well, what did you expect, Doctor? It's a wild animal. It's not like mumble from Happy Feet."

He sighed angrily.

"Right, come on you, off my boots." He said. He grabbed the penguin around the middle, picked it up and turned towards the hill. Rose tapped him on the shoulder and he looked back at her.

"I think it would be in very bad form to dropkick the penguin." She said.

"I wasn't gonna dropkick the penguin, Rose. I was taking it back down the hill, alright?" he said.

"Just making sure."

The Doctor shook his head. She heard him mutter "Dropkick the penguin indeed, what kind of man you take me for, Tyler?" as he headed back down the hill.

He returned a few moments later, sans penguin, and walked back up to Rose.

"Everyone follow me!" he said. "We're going back down the hill!"

"Why, did you find something?" Rose asked.

He looked at her.

"Indeed I did, I was so preoccupied with the penguins, I didn't notice there are some buildings about a mile away from them.

The group behind the rock looked at each other and came out from behind it. They walked up to the Doctor and Rose and he led them all back down the hill.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Adam Turner rubbed his weary eyes as he sat at his desk making sense of the latest readouts. He and his colleague, Robert Jones, were the only scientists working at Halley Research Station. The other fourteen people were support personnel who were there to keep the station running until the summer season when more scientists would return. He had been there only a few months, but he looked forward to the day when he could return to his normal life in Sheffield. The only other life nearby was the Emperor penguin colony a mile away so it was a very lonely life at times. He got along great with the others, but sometimes he wished he could talk to somebody new.

He looked up when he heard someone banging on the front door.

"It's open, Robert, come on in!" he yelled.

"I am in." Robert said, appearing in the doorway.

Adam frowned when he heard someone banging.

"Well, who's outside then?"

Robert shrugged. He stepped aside as Adam walked out of the room towards the front door.

"Alright, I'm coming, quit beating on the bloody door!" he yelled as the banging continued.

The banging stopped.

"Thank you." He said as he opened the door. "The door was unlocked, why didn't you just come…"

He paused and his eyes widened in shock when he saw an unfamiliar person standing on the ladder leading up to the door.

"Hello," the man said. "My friends and I were out walking and we're tired and need to rest. May we come inside?"

Adam stared at him, stunned.

"Who the Hell are you?" he said.

"I'm the Doctor. Below me are Rose Tyler, Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper, Owen Harper, Toshiko Sato, and Ianto Jones. You are?"

"In shock that you're even out here!" Adam said. "What are you doing out in the middle of Antarctica?"

"Well, we're a bunch of obscenely wealthy people who travel the globe seeing the sights and looking for adventure. We were sitting in our fabulous mansion one night sipping cognac by a roaring fire in our huge den and discussing where we should go next and I said "I know, we haven't been to Antarctica yet, let's go there!" and everyone said, "Jolly good!" and we ran out the door and here we are. We were admiring the penguins and we noticed your facility, so we thought we might walk over here and get warmed up."

"Who is it, Adam?" Robert said coming into the room.

He paused and looked at the Doctor.

"I'm the Doctor." He said to him. "Can I and my friends come inside?"

"Um…s…sure." Robert said looking at Adam who stepped aside to let him in.

"Thanks." He said climbing the rest of the way up.

Adam and Robert stared at the Doctor in disbelief as he helped his friends up into the room.

"Oh thank God, heat." Owen muttered as he helped Gwen.

Jack was the final one and when he clambered up the ladder into the room, the Doctor closed the door behind them.

"So…"Adam said. "All of you came out here in the middle of the winter season because you were bored and wanted something to do?"

"Spot on!" the Doctor replied. "We have more money than we know what to do with, so we just think up crazy things to do to pass the time and a hike at the bottom of the world seemed right up our alley."

He took Rose's hand.

"Isn't that right, my dear?"

"Oh yes, quite!" Rose said in a nasally voice. "We're all completely certifiable and we have a billion dollar fortune, so we've decided to spend it doing foolish activities just for the sake of being able to say we did them. It brings a bit of excitement to our posh little lives!"

The Doctor bit his lip; he glanced at Jack who was barely able to contain his laughter. Jack put his hand over his mouth when he noticed his team was giving the Doctor and Rose odd looks.

_I see we'll have to enlighten them on how the Doctor does things._ He thought to himself.

Adam and Robert looked at each other.

"So, how did you get down here?" Robert asked. "The next cargo ship won't be here for another four months."

"Ah," the Doctor said. "Well, see we chartered a private plane from Punta Arenas, Chile to here. Unfortunately, upon landing, we got a bit too eager and took off roaming all over the continent trying to see the sights and got ourselves in a spot of trouble because now we don't know where the plane is. Isn't that a rotten piece of luck?"

"Um…yes, yes it is." Adam said wondering if it had been a good idea to invite these strange people in. "Look, we don't have very much right now since it's been a couple of months since the cargo ship came, but I'll try to see if I can find some food for you and you're welcome to rest up and see if you can contact the plane to fly you out of here."

"That would be very decent of you." The Doctor said nodding.

Adam looked at Robert.

"Could you just wait here a moment and Bob and I will get something set up for you."

"Of course." The Doctor said.

Casting odd looks at them, Adam and Robert quickly left the room.

"Punta Arenas, Chile?" Jack said. "Where in the Hell did you come up with that?"

"Michael Palin's Pole to Pole. I watched it a couple of years ago and that's how he finally ended up getting to Antarctica. He took a charter plane from Punta Arenas, Chile when he missed a boat that was supposed to sail there. Little ol me and my head for trivia, you know." He said pointing to his noggin.

"Well, I'm glad you were able to think of something." Jack replied, taking off his hat and scarf.

He glanced around as everyone else removed their hats and scarves.

"Where are we, I wonder?" he asked.

"The secret Torchwood lab?" Gwen offered.

"I doubt it." The Doctor said. "More than likely, it's a research station or a base. Even though it's a remote continent, it's not uninhabited. Torchwood wouldn't build a facility out in the open like this, I'm sure of it."

"Then, this is what the TARDIS was picking up?" Tosh said. "This place?"

"Maybe, maybe not." The Doctor replied. "Just because this place is here doesn't mean the lab isn't nearby. We'll still need to search to be sure."

"Can your screwdriver thingy distinguish between the lab and this place?" Owen asked.

"Oh yeah, if the lab is underground my screwdriver will indicate that. We just need to get far enough away from here for it to be able to tell the difference."

"Hopefully, we'll stay for a little while." Rose said. "I need to warm up."

The others nodded.

"Oh we will. I need to warm up as well." The Doctor said as everyone let out a sigh of relief. "Just don't get too comfortable because we will have to leave again soon. Time is of the essence. If the Antarctic lab was in communication with the one under the flood barrier, they might get suspicious if they keep trying to contact them and don't get a response back. Then they might assume the worst and move their operations elsewhere to be on the safe side. We can't let that happen."

They looked over as Adam and Robert came into the room.

"We've got some cold sandwiches and hot chocolate for you. If you'll follow us, we'll show you where the kitchen is." Adam said.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Adam and Robert led the newcomers into a room with a long table. A couple of bearded men were sitting quietly talking to each other at the end of it. They looked up as everyone smiled and said hello to them. A large plate sat in the middle of the table with several turkey sandwiches on it and several mugs of hot chocolate sat beside it. Everyone grabbed the mugs and took a huge swig enjoying the feel of the hot liquid as it ran down their throats into their bellies. They each grabbed a sandwich and sat down beside each other.

"Oh man, turkey and hot chocolate never tasted so good in my whole life." Gwen said.

They looked back at the men.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor. This is Rose, Gwen, Tosh, Ianto, Owen and Jack."

One of the bearded men nodded.

"My name's Rupert. This is David." He said indicating the man across from him. "We're maintenance workers here."

He frowned.

"Who are you?"

"Wealthy adventurers. We came here to see the sights." The Doctor said.

David snorted.

"Well, if you've seen the snow and the penguins, you're done then." He said as Rupert nodded.

"Where are we exactly?" Owen asked.

"Halley Research Station. We're one of the British research facilities here. There's a number or research facilities scattered along the coast of Antarctica." Rupert said. "It's winter here so none of the research stations are heavily staffed, which is lucky for you lot. Right now there are only 16 people, usually in the summer when it's warmer, there's about 60 of us."

"I see," the Doctor said. "And…are there any other…facilities located near here?"

Rupert shook his head.

"No, there's no one else for miles and miles, you were very lucky to find us." He said.

"I see…so, we're the first people you've seen in months?" the Doctor asked. "You haven't seen anyone else?"

Rupert and David looked at each other.

"No, the only other things we've seen are those penguins out there." He said. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was just thinking how lonely it must be out here for you." The Doctor said quickly. "I mean staying out here in the snow and ice for months at a time. You must be on the verge of insanity by the time you leave."

Rupert laughed and David nodded.

"Yup, that's one way to put it, mate." He said. "Its interesting being in Antarctica, but at the end of the day it's good to be in your own home."

The Doctor nodded.

"Well, it's nice to meet all of you, but we have to get back to work." Rupert said as he and David got up. "I hope you find your plane. When you're done eating, I can show you where the radio room is so you can make contact. I won't be very far so just come and get me when you're done."

"Thanks, we will." The Doctor said.

They waved at Rupert and David as they left the room.

"Halley Research Station, is that a real research station?" Gwen asked quietly.

The Doctor nodded.

"Yes, that's the name of an actual facility."

"But, you know, if it is Torchwood, they could be using their name as a front." Tosh said.

"Possibly, but why would they risk doing that when there's already a research station here with that name?" he asked. "Especially since they'd risk being confused for the real one and get the workers that were supposed to go to the real one. No, I don't think they'd do that. I think this is the actual Halley Research Station."

"Ugh, so that means we'll probably have to go out and search for the real lab." Jack said.

"You got it."

Everyone groaned.

"Hey, it's not my fault Torchwood decided to build a lab out in the middle of nowhere." The Doctor said. "The fact that they did gives me even more reason to suspect they're up to no good."

"Do you think they know by now what happened to the other Torchwood?" Rose asked.

"Dunno, it depends on how closely they were keeping in contact." The Doctor said. "They could access the shared files I found and read about their troubles with the Widow and figure out why they haven't responded back to them and the memo I saw also mentioned they were having problems keeping the Widow under control. As to what they'll do with that info, I haven't the foggiest idea. I'm sure they'll chalk it up to bad luck and go on with business as usual."

""How many people do they have?" Jack asked. "I was under the impression that the attack at Canary Wharf crippled them. I mean only a few people survived it."

"Yes, but we have no idea how many people they had working for them beforehand." The Doctor countered. "Harriet Jones was concerned with defending Earth at any cost which is why she went ahead and blew up that Sycorax ship as it was leaving the planet. I'm sure this is why these secret labs were set up. I'm also pretty sure she didn't want me getting wind of them and shutting them down. No, Torchwood knows how much I despise them and I'm sure the labs are scattered all around the Earth in far away inaccessible locations where they hope I won't find them. But, thanks to my digging into their database, I already know there are at least two more labs out there. There's one lab deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest and another somewhere in the Sahara desert. Those are our next destinations after we take care of this one. They are the only two that were mentioned in the files I found though, so we'll access the databases at each location and see if we can find mentions of any more labs." The Doctor said. "I'm not gonna rest till I'm damn sure that all renegade Torchwoods are gone from the Earth."

"Hooray for us and our non-renegade selves." Jack said. "See, team, I told you it pays off to be careful in whatever we do."

"What about the radio room?" Tosh asked. "Are you still gonna use it?"

"I think I'll take a look at it after we're done eating. They should have a logbook that lists all communications going in and out; maybe they've picked up a stray signal from the lab at some point and put it down as an anomaly." He said. "At any rate, it'll make us look less suspicious especially since we did say we got separated from our plane."

He took a sip of hot chocolate.

"In the meantime, we'll rest and get warmed up enough to head out again. That lab is around here somewhere, I can feel it. All we have to do is locate it and then we strike!"

"Yeah, but I have a feeling that'll be easier said than done." Owen said.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

After eating, the Doctor and his companions left the room in search of Rupert. They found him with a clipboard inspecting the equipment.

"All done?" he asked upon seeing them.

"Yes, we are." The Doctor said.

"Follow me then."

He sat the clipboard down on a nearby table. He led them to a small room just down the corridor. The room was barren. The only thing on the wall was a huge map of Antarctica. Underneath it a radio receiver, microphone, and log book sat on a small wooden table. A couple of wooden chairs were in front of the table. He walked over to the receiver and turned it on.

"Just push down on the button on the base of the microphone and talk." Rupert said pointing to it. "Then release the button to listen."

"Gotcha." The Doctor said.

He sat down at the chair nearest the microphone and smiled at Rupert as he walked back out of the room. He waited a moment and then pointed to the other chair.

"One of you guys sit here and help me look through the log book." He said. "I'm gonna pretend to talk into this microphone just in case someone is listening."

"I will." Ianto said.

The Doctor nodded and everyone backed up as he came up and sat down in the chair. The Doctor looked back at the door and then bent over the log book as Ianto opened it up to the first page.

"Hello?" the Doctor said loudly as he glanced through the entries with Ianto. "Hello, is anyone out there? We're stranded and looking for the pilot of our plane. Is anyone out there?"

He shook his head at Ianto when he saw nothing out of the ordinary written on the first page. Ianto turned the page and he and the Doctor searched the entries.

"Hello?" the Doctor said out loud as his eyes ran down the page. "Hello, is anyone out there? SOS! We need help!"

Finding nothing they turned the page. The Doctor continued to talk out loud as he and Ianto looked at the entries. Finally, halfway down the fourth page, the Doctor jabbed his finger at an entry. Everyone gathered around and looked at where he was pointing.

20 July 2007: Picked up stray transmission. Man talking, but could not pinpoint location. Tried to contact, but received no answer. Tried again and could not contact. Conclusion: Interference from stray radio waves.

"Bingo!" the Doctor whispered to Ianto. "That has to be the lab!"

"You sure?" Jack whispered.

"What else could it be? No one is close enough for them to pick up a signal." The Doctor said.

He looked back at Ianto.

"We gotta wrap this up. I want you to pretend to be the pilot."

"Me?" Ianto said.

"Yes, they don't know your voice. Pretend you're the pilot and you're answering my distress signal. If anyone is listening, I want it to sound like we've made contact so we can get out of here without anyone asking questions." He said.

"What do I say?"

"Just whatever comes to mind. Don't worry, you can do it. Just improvise." He said.

Ianto shrugged.

"Um…This is Plane number…X4-niner, fiver, 10." Ianto said out loud.

"Well, it's about time you drunken sod! We're all lost! What are you doing, sitting around getting pissed while we're out here freezing our arses off?"

The Doctor smiled at Ianto's shocked look.

"Hey, I'm a rich important guy and you're a drunken underpaid pilot, of course I'm gonna be mad at ya." He said with an impish grin.

Jack snickered as Ianto shot him a look.

"Well," Ianto said loudly as he stared at the Doctor. "Um…It's your fault! I told you not to wander off and you gits just take off running the moment your feet hit the ground! I warned you about getting lost, didn't I?"

"Now you're getting it!" the Doctor said nodding.

He cleared his throat.

"Hey! Don't talk to me like that! I can buy and sell you and your pathetic charter plane company a hundred times over! Don't you know who I am? I am Doctor Reginald Fauntleroy Aloysius Portdrinker The 3rd and I…"

He paused and bit his lip when Rose fell onto his back laughing.

"My darling, it's not funny!" he said to her in a snobby tone of voice. "This nob thinks he can order me around like a servant. Stay put, indeed! I am a British explorer, by God. It was overzealous men like me that made the British Empire what it was! I'm following a respected tradition of crazy gits who just went headlong into countries and continents without a second thought to life and limb! Rule Britannia and all that, don't you know!"

He snickered as Rose howled with silent laughter.

"Your turn, Ianto." He said gesturing to him.

"Gee, I don't think I'll be able to keep this up without cracking up now." He said as everyone else giggled. "What did you say before you went off into your rant?"

"Um…I could buy and sell you a hundred times over…"

"Oh yeah,"

Ianto cleared his throat and tried to keep a straight face.

"Listen Mate, don't take that tone of voice with me if you wanna get off this continent alive!" he said. "You may be able to buy and sell me a hundred times over, but at the end of the day I'm the one with the bleedin' plane and I'm the only one who knows how to fly it. So, just shut your gob and get back here before I leave you to the polar bears!"

"Um…no, polar bears don't live in Antarctica." The Doctor corrected him. "They're up near the north pole."

"Oh, sorry." Ianto said.

"Duh, Ianto, I could have told you that!" Jack said giggling.

Ianto shot him a dirty look.

"I mean…penguins!" Ianto said. "So, you better get back here within the next thirty minutes or I'm leaving you behind, over and out!"

The Doctor nodded as Rose patted him and Ianto on the back and wiped the tears from her eyes as she finished giggling.

"Great. Didn't know if anyone was around to hear that, but better to be safe than sorry. Don't want to raise anyone's suspicions and have them actually call for someone to come and get us. Now, let's get some more of that ointment on our faces and get wrapped up and get out of here, we have lot of work to do, team!"

They watched as he stood up and took the rucksack off his back. Ianto looked at Jack.

"Is this really how the guy does things?" he whispered to him.

"Oh yeah, trust me, you pick up on it really fast." He told his team. "Rose and I were hesitant about doing stuff like this at first, but now we're both experts at it. You quickly learn to throw off inhibitions and just go with the flow around the Doctor. Actually, it's kinda fun, I think. Keeps things interesting."

"Yoo-hoo, Torchwood team!"

They all looked over at the Doctor and Rose who were rubbing the ointment on their faces.

"Less talk, more ointment if you please." The Doctor said.

"You heard the man, team, on with the ointment." Jack said.

They took their rucksacks off their backs and got the ointment out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You sure you know where you're going?" Adam asked the Doctor as they stood by the front door.

"Oh yeah, after the pilot got done yelling and insulting me, he gave me the directions to the plane. We'll have no trouble finding it now." He replied.

"Well, in the future, use your head before you go flying off to places you have no business being at." Adam said. "If we weren't here, you probably would have froze to death searching for your plane. So, in the future, I'd lay off the booze when you're making travel plans."

"Indeed, I think in future we will do just that, won't we guys?" he said looking at the others as they nodded.

"But, Reginald," Gwen said to the Doctor. "Does that mean we're not gonna go bungee jumping off the Taj Mahal now?"

Everyone stared at her for a moment as a grin spread over the Doctor's face and he gave her an approving nod.

"You wanna bungee jump off the Taj Mahal?" Adam said in disbelief.

"Indeed we do." The Doctor said spinning his head back around. "Mountains, cliffs, it's all been done before. Leaping off India's national treasure without getting arrested? Now there's an extreme sport!"

Rose and the Torchwood team turned away and laughed silently as Adam gave the Doctor an odd look. Adam shook his head and opened the door.

"Well, goodbye then, I guess." He said quietly. "Have fun bungee jumping off the Taj Mahal."

"We will and good luck to you and your team! Keep Antarctica British! The queen is depending on you!" the Doctor said saluting.

"Um…yeah…we will." Adam said.

He watched as everyone put their hats and scarves on and climbed back down the ladder. When the last one finally left, he closed the door behind them.

"Looney gits." He said to himself as he walked out of the room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor laughed loudly as he and the others walked away from the research station.

"Taj Mahal! That was brilliant!" He said patting Gwen on the back. "I love it!"

He grinned at Rose.

"Did you see the look on Adam's face when she said it? Priceless!" he said as Rose nodded.

"Well, Jack said you guys like to make up crazy stuff like that so I thought I'd join in." Gwen said.

"I'm so glad you did. I love it when my companions join in like that. Makes things fun." He said patting her on the back.

"I felt kinda weird doing it since I'm usually not like that, but it was funny the way he reacted." Gwen said.

"Ah, don't worry about it, Gwen, it took me awhile to get used to doing that and getting up enough nerve to bullshit my way through situations, but now I do it without a second thought." Rose said.

The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it ahead of them as they walked.

"Yup, I was right; the screwdriver is picking up some electrical energy this way. Something else is out here." He said.

He hurried to the front of the group and kept his screwdriver on leading the way as he read the readout on the tiny display. As they neared the colony of penguins, the Doctor suddenly stopped them.

"Wait here." He said.

He broke off from the group and neared the colony pointing the screwdriver at the ground. He walked around the outskirts of the colony aiming the screwdriver and reading the results. After a few moments of this, he headed back to the group.

"Found it!" he said triumphantly.

"You did? You found the hidden lab?" Jack asked.

"I believe so. The screwdriver is indicating strong electrical energy right at this spot. There's only one problem though."

"Yeah, what?" Jack asked.

He pointed to the colony.

"I think the entrance to it is somewhere in the middle of all those penguins." He said.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The group stared at the tight mass of penguins as they squawked at each other.

"Um, okay, so how do we get in there and get to the entrance?" Owen asked.

They jumped when Jack suddenly ran forward.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" he screamed as he thrust his arms open and ran towards the penguins. "AAAAAAAAAH...AH!"

He screamed when a couple of the penguins chased after him snapping at his butt. The group laughed as he ran around them and the penguins went back to the outskirts of the group.

"Okay, I guess scaring them doesn't work." Jack said.

"Well, yeah," Tosh replied. "Especially since there are over a hundred of them here."

"Well, what do you suggest, Tosh?" Jack asked.

"I don't know, I've never dealt with penguins before. I…"

They looked over when they heard the penguins in the front let out shrieks. They looked at the Doctor and saw he was aiming his sonic screwdriver at them. He looked at them as they quickly waddled away from the sonic disturbance.

"Look everyone, I'm Moses parting the penguin sea!" he said.

"Does that hurt them?" Gwen asked.

"Nah, just irritates them to no end. Once we pass by, they'll be perfectly fine. Now hurry before they get testy and decide to take a bite out of us."

The group looked at each other and followed the Doctor as he walked through the penguins. They kept close by him as the penguins scattered and let out enraged squawks as they bumped into the penguins beside them. The Doctor gasped when a penguin tried to bite the hand holding the screwdriver. He aimed the screwdriver at it and the penguin quickly backed up.

The group looked around nervously as the penguins fell back in behind them, but thankfully they did not attack.

Finally after about ten minutes, they reached the center of the penguin throng and the Doctor walked around in a circle pointing the screwdriver at the ground. He paused a moment and looked at the readout.

"Rose." He said looking over his shoulder.

"Yes, Doctor?" Rose said stepping forward.

"I think I found the entrance. Hold the screwdriver and keep the penguins back while I dig through the snow and find it. The rest of you, could you help me?"

The group came forward and bent down with the Doctor. As they dug through the snow, Rose stood by them holding the screwdriver and watching all around them for any sign of attack by the irritated penguins. She aimed the screwdriver at a male Emperor penguin who snapped at her and he let out an angry squawk and waddled backwards.

"Hurry, Doctor, I don't know how long I can hold them off." Rose said.

"We've just about got it, Rosebud. Just hold them back a little bit longer." The Doctor said as he and the other dug through the snow as fast as they could.

A few minutes later, the Doctor let out a triumphant yell when they brushed aside the snow and saw a metal door.

"Rose give me the screwdriver." He said reaching up for it. "The rest of you find the edges."

Rose joined the group and they quickly brushed the snow off and found all the edges of the door as the Doctor aimed the screwdriver at it.

"Okay, back up and get your weapons out. No telling if someone is right behind this door." The Doctor said.

The group quickly took off their rucksacks and got the guns and knives out as the Doctor put his hand on the small metal handle.

"Ready?" he said to them.

Jack looked at everyone.

"Ready, Doctor." He said.

The Doctor nodded. Jack came up behind him and aimed the gun at the door as the Doctor pulled on the handle. He grunted when the door stuck and Owen came up and grabbed the handle with him.

"On the count of three, pull as hard as you can." The Doctor said to him.

Owen nodded.

"1…2…3!"

Both men pulled and the door finally gave way and swung up. Jack aimed his gun down at the entrance, and then relaxed when he saw only a metal ladder going down.

"You want me to go first, Doctor?" Jack asked softly.

The Doctor looked at him.

"It's up to you, Jack." He said softly.

Jack nodded.

"I wanna go down first. If there are armed men down there, I'm the one that can risk being shot."

The Doctor nodded.

"Good luck and be careful."

Jack nodded. The Doctor and Owen moved out of the way and Jack put his foot on the top step and started down. Owen readied his gun as everyone watched Jack descend the ladder. Jack hesitated a moment at the bottom, raised his gun in front of him and they watched as he slowly walked out of sight. For a moment, nothing happened and they couldn't see Jack.

"Should I go down there?" Owen whispered to the Doctor.

"Wait." The Doctor replied holding up his hand. "Give him another minute and then go."

Owen nodded.

About thirty seconds later, Jack finally appeared.

"All clear, I can't see anyone nearby." He whispered up to them.

The Doctor nodded.

"Rose, Tosh, Gwen, go first. Owen, Ianto and I will be right behind you." The Doctor said.

The girls stepped forward. The Doctor and Owen helped them step down onto the ladder and watched as they descended the ladder. Jack stood at the bottom and the women got behind him as they got off. Finally when all three were down on the ground, the Doctor looked at Ianto and Owen.

"Go ahead, I'll go last and close the door."

Ianto climbed in followed by Owen. The Doctor quickly swung the sonic screwdriver around when he noticed the penguins getting too close and when they had backed up enough to give him some room, he quickly got on the ladder, went down and closed the door behind him.

He hopped off the ladder and walked over to the others. He looked around and saw they were in a brightly lit corridor. He looked one way and then down the other.

"What do we do? Which way do we go?" Jack asked.

The Doctor looked at his six companions.

"Question is, should we split up or go as a group?" he asked.

"I think we should split up." Owen said. "It'll be easier to sneak around if there aren't seven of us in a bunch."

"I agree." Tosh said.

"So, do I." Rose said.

The Doctor looked around.

"Everyone for splitting up?"

Everyone else nodded.

"Okay, I guess the obvious leaders will be me and Jack? That okay with everyone?"

Everyone looked at each other and nodded.

"Okay, Jack, who do you want?" he asked him.

Jack looked at everyone.

"Gwen, Owen and Tosh." He said.

"Fine, I'll take Rose and Ianto then." The Doctor said.

Jack reached into his pocket and brought out a bunch of communicators.

"Put these behind your ear." He said to the Doctor and Rose. "It's how we communicate out in the field."

"Oh, fantastic! What an excellent idea." He said.

Everyone took a communicator and put it behind their ear.

"Okay, so the next question is, which way do you want to go?" he asked Jack.

"Um, we'll go left, you go right."

The Doctor nodded. He looked at Rose and Ianto.

"Right, it is. If anything happens, try to meet back here and be careful."

"You too." Jack said.

Jack and Ianto made eye contact for a moment and Jack smiled at him briefly before he and his team turned and headed left. The Doctor, Rose and Ianto watched them for a moment before they turned and headed right.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

"Jack, you guys okay?" the Doctor said into the communicator as he, Ianto and Rose crept down the corridor.

"Yeah, we haven't seen anything yet. Just some locked doors." Jack replied.

"Same here." The Doctor said. "We haven't seen anyone yet. They must be confident that no one would ever find them out here."

"Lucky for us." Jack said.

"Yeah, but still, be on your guard. Who knows if they're watching us secretly."

"Will do. Be careful, Doctor."

"You too, over and out."

The Doctor, Rose and Ianto walked quietly down the corridor looking all around them for any sign of danger. Unbeknownst to them, they and Jack's teams had already been spotted and were being observed. In a tiny room, two men sat and stared at monitors as they tracked their progress down the corridor.

"Do you know who they are?" One man said to the other.

"No clue, but whoever they are, they're armed." The other man replied. "That must mean they came here to make trouble."

They looked back as the door opened and a middle aged man entered. He was a slightly overweight Caucasian man with piercing blue eyes and long brown hair tied back in a ponytail. He walked over to the men at the monitors.

"What is it, Bradley?" he asked a pudgy man with blonde hair and thick black glasses.

"Sir, we have intruders. Seven of them. They tripped the silent alarm when they came down the hatch." Bradley said, pointing at the monitors.

The man leaned over the back of the chair looking at the grainy black and white picture. He looked first at Jack's team and then at the Doctor's. His eyes widened when he spotted the Doctor. He looked at the man beside Bradley, a young man in his twenties with red hair and green eyes.

"Henderson, zoom in on him." He said pointing to the Doctor.

Henderson moved a lever and the picture zoomed in on the Doctor's face.

"So, you finally found us, Doctor." The man muttered to himself.

Bradley looked up at him.

"I'm sorry, Sir, who is the Doctor?" he asked.

The man looked at him.

"You work for Torchwood and you have no idea who the Doctor is?" he said in disbelief. "Son, he is the whole reason Torchwood exists!"

Bradley and Henderson looked at each other.

"I'm sorry, Sir, I mean I never heard of---"Bradley said sheepishly.

The man held up his hand.

"It's alright; you're a low level employee. You wouldn't have access to restricted files." He said.

He pointed to the Doctor.

"The Doctor is Torchwood's greatest enemy and a threat to international security." He said.

Henderson raised his eyebrow.

"This guy? He doesn't look that threatening." He said.

The man snorted.

"He is more dangerous than you can possibly imagine. He was the one responsible for the destruction of Torchwood One. Him and that blonde haired woman behind him. They are a menace and must be stopped at any cost."

He pointed to Ianto.

"This one worked at Torchwood One. He was there the day the Cybermen and Daleks invaded and was one of the few who survived. Shortly after that, he left and took up with this lot." The man continued pointing to Jack and his team on the other monitor.

"Who are they?" Bradley asked pointing to Jack.

"The man you're pointing to is Jack Harkness. He is the head of a renegade faction of Torchwood that's based in Cardiff." The man said with contempt. "He is not officially a part of our organization because he and his lot insist on ignoring orders from headquarters and doing things their way. They are just as dangerous as the Doctor is. I don't know how they found us, but we can't let them destroy this lab the way they destroyed Torchwood One."

He looked over and saw that the Doctor had stopped and was conferring silently with his team as he gestured off to his left.

"You may think you have the upper hand, Doctor, but, soon you and your little Scooby Doo gang will be our prisoners and then I think we'll give you a little examination and find out just what makes you tick!"

Henderson and Bradley looked at each other.

"What do you mean by that, sir?" he asked.

The man smirked.

"Oh, I believe we'll start out with a little physical followed by a vivisection and a removal of his brain for scientific study."

Henderson and Bradley looked at each other again.

"Sir, isn't that a little extreme?" Henderson said. "I mean, I realize he's an intruder and must be dealt with, but the man is still entitled to some basic human rights."

"But, that's the beauty of it. He's not human."

They glanced at each other.

"He's not?" Bradley asked.

"Nope, he's alien and you know our motto, if it's alien, it's ours!" he said gleefully. "If the Doctor wants to poke around our facility then we'll return the favor and poke around in his insides. It'll be a fitting end for the little troublemaker, especially when he ends up as a trophy on display."

He paused and watched the Doctor, Rose and Ianto walk down the corridor.

"On the other hand, a little brainwashing might come in handy too, both for him and his friends. It would be just as fitting to turn him and his TARDIS into a weapon in the service of the crown. The Doctor fighting our intergalactic enemies for us. That would be just as good as vivisection."

He smirked.

"Decisions, decisions. I just can't decide whether you should live or die, Doctor." He said.

Henderson looked at him.

"What should we do? Do you want us to alert the guards to capture him and his friends?"

The man thought for a moment.

"Not yet, let them get further in so there will be no chance of escape when we do grab them. The Doctor has come all this way; let him at least get a glimpse of the facility before he's whisked off to the laboratory. In the meantime, alert the surgeon that we have someone for him to play with. Even if we do decide to use him as a tool, there's no harm in sedating him and getting a good look at that binary vascular system of his. Should be interesting seeing how his two hearts work. Besides, Doctor Vaughn can open up his brain, fiddle with it and reprogram him that way.

"What about the others?" Bradley asked.

"Ah, well, that's up to the Doctor. If he cooperates fully with us, we might let them go. On the other hand, we might not. I don't think the world will mourn if Harkness and his team suddenly vanish into thin air. As for the girl…I'm not sure. She also brought about the destruction of Torchwood and needs to be punished just as severely as the Doctor. But, she is a human and we need to be careful. If her family finds out we've done something to her, there could be repercussions."

He shrugged.

"But then again, if she is with the Doctor, I'm sure she's left her family behind to travel with him, so if she does go missing they'll have no idea where she is. That makes it all the more easier for us to do away with her."

He patted Henderson on the shoulder.

"Keep an eye on them, but do nothing. I'll alert the guards up ahead of both groups to be ready to strike when I give the signal. In the meantime, we'll let the Doctor and his friends have a little tour."

"Yes, sir." Henderson and Bradley said in unison.

"Good men. Keep up the good work and there may be a promotion for you both. Keep me informed if something happens in the meantime. I'll be having a break before the fun starts."

Chuckling to himself, he turned and walked out of the room as Henderson and Bradley went back to watching the monitors.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

The Doctor, Rose and Ianto paused at the end of the corridor. In front of them was a steel door with a numerical keypad beside it.

"Jack." The Doctor whispered.

"Jack, here."

"We found a door. You have to key in a number code to get in, but my sonic screwdriver can take care of that. Have you found anything?"

"Not yet, we just turned a corner and we're going down another hallway." Jack replied. "Other than seeing locked doors every few feet, there hasn't been much in the way of excitement. We haven't seen a single person yet."

"I know, we haven't either and that worries me." The Doctor said. "Something is up, Jack, I'm sure of it. A big facility like this would have some sort of security system in place or guards posted even if they are out in the middle of nowhere."

"You think they're all hiding behind the big metal door?" Jack asked.

"Maybe, so we're gonna be extra cautious. We didn't come this far to get nabbed."

"Well, keep me posted. If there's any hint of trouble, we'll come running back to you."

"Gotcha, over and out." The Doctor said softly.

He looked at Rose and Ianto.

"Okay, here we go, just stay close and keep your weapons at the ready and we should be alright."

Rose and Ianto nodded. They followed behind the Doctor as he hurried to the door. He pulled out his screwdriver and aimed it at the keypad and a few seconds later they heard a click and the door unlocked. The Doctor put his hand on the door handle and glanced over at Rose, who was carrying Jack's hunting knife and Ianto, who had his gun. Ianto moved beside the door and held his gun up waiting for the Doctor to open the door. Rose stood in between the two men gripping the handle of the knife.

"Ready?" the Doctor whispered.

They nodded.

The Doctor opened the door a crack trying hard not to make any noise as Rose and Ianto tensed their bodies ready to spring into action if need be. The Doctor looked at Ianto who nodded and after a moment's pause, he opened it quickly and Ianto quickly ran in holding his gun out. The Doctor and Rose looked in and when they saw no one was in sight, they lowered their weapons.

"All clear again." The Doctor whispered.

They heard the sounds of machinery floating up the corridor. Ianto looked back at the Doctor and Rose.

"I'll go first since I have the gun." He said.

They nodded and slipped inside behind Ianto. The Doctor closed the door and locked it with his sonic screwdriver. They looked at each other and the Doctor nodded. Ianto held his gun out in front of him as they slowly walked down the corridor following the sounds. As they walked, the Doctor glanced around them and frowned. He had trouble believing that Torchwood wouldn't leave their hallways undefended like this. That fact gnawed at his mind and he sighed knowing they were probably walking into a trap. It was too late to turn back now though. If they had been spotted, they probably would have sent guards to the ladder to prevent their escape. He considered contacting Jack and telling him his suspicions, but decided to wait until he was sure they were alone.

After a few minutes, they turned a corner and saw an open door at the end of the corridor. They could hear the machine sounds clearly and now they could pick out the scattered voices of men and women as well.

_Well, we finally managed to locate some people around here._ The Doctor thought.

Pressing up against the wall, they crept down the corridor keeping their eyes peeled for any danger. Reaching the end, they saw the door led out onto a metal catwalk far above the activity below. Quietly, the Doctor and his companions crept out onto the catwalk keeping their eyes on the floor below. Several men and woman went about their business unaware that they were being watched from above. The Doctor looked past them and noticed a partially dismantled spaceship in the corner of the huge, white room. Three men and a woman moved up and down the spaceship's entrance ramp going into and out of it and a couple of people were off to the side taking off parts of it with blowtorches and hammers. The Doctor shook his head wondering if Torchwood had more people dismantling the spaceship's crew in the same manner.

He looked over and noticed Rose and Ianto were giving him questioning looks. He gestured ahead of them with his screwdriver and they continued silently along the catwalk. As they walked, the Doctor looked around them and noticed someone wheeling a cart filled with alien technology out of the room. There were a couple of employees with clipboards in their hands talking and gesturing back to the spaceship.

"Brian, do you have the specs on that Klantarian Death Ray?" Someone shouted below them.

They watched as the man who had shouted the question walked up to a fair-haired gentleman, took some paperwork from his hands, thanked him and walked towards the exit.

Looking around, the Doctor estimated there were about twenty five employees in the room. He wondered how many there were in total.

"Doctor, you there?"

The Doctor winced when he heard Jack's voice. He looked up ahead and saw a shadowy spot. He and the others quickly moved to it and crouched down.

"Jack, I can't talk now." The Doctor whispered. "We're in a huge room full of people."

"We found something too. I think it's an exam room." Jack whispered back. "They have a metal table in here and medical and surgical equipment. Tosh and Owen are looking it over, but we're pretty sure they've used it for dissections because they have doctor's notes in here that talk about opening up aliens and looking at their insides and taking apart their brains and other gross stuff like that."

The Doctor sighed angrily. He looked over at Rose and Ianto and saw from the expressions on their faces that they were hearing the same thing he was.

They heard Owen's voice in the background.

"Oh gross!" Jack said.

"What?" the Doctor whispered.

"They got…pickled alien…intestines in a jar. I'm guessing they belonged to an alien because they're purple. Ugh!"

There was a pause while they heard Jack telling Owen to put the jar back.

"Anyway, that's all we've found so far. We'll let you know if something comes…"

The Doctor frowned when Jack suddenly stopped talking.

"Jack?" the Doctor whispered.

His eyes widened when he heard the sound of running in the room.

"Can't talk now, someone's coming. Gotta go!" Jack whispered quickly.

"Jack!" the Doctor hissed.

There was no answer and the Doctor cast a worried glance at Rose and Ianto.

"D'ya think they're alright?" Rose whispered.

"Dunno, I hope so." The Doctor whispered back. "Anyway, let's get going before anyone finds us."

"I'm afraid it's a bit late for that!"

Rose and Ianto jerked their heads around when a man dressed in black and wearing black makeup on his face and hands emerged from the shadows pointing a submachine gun at their heads. The Doctor put his hands up and slowly got up as Rose and Ianto did the same.

"Hello, Doctor, been expecting you." The guard said. "Now if you follow me, the man in charge wishes to have a word with you and your friends."

The Doctor sighed angrily. He, Rose and Ianto kept their arms up as they moved past the guard. He waited until the Doctor passed and then keeping his gun on their backs led them across the catwalk to a door on the other side.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

The man looked up when he heard a knock on his office door.

"Yes?" he called out.

"I have the Doctor and his friends, Mister Wormwood." The guard said through the door.

"Ah, good, bring them in."

The door opened and the guard ushered the three captives inside.

"What about their friends?" Wormwood asked the guard.

"They've captured them too. They're in a holding cell at the moment."

The Doctor groaned softly. He had hoped that the others had gotten away.

"Excellent. You can go now. I wish to talk to these people in private."

"Yes, sir." The guard said.

The Doctor watched as the guard left the room and shut the door behind him.

"If you are thinking about running out the door, I can assure you that guards are standing just outside and will shoot you on sight." Wormwood told the Doctor. "So, you might as well quit looking at the door hoping you'll get out of here. You and your friends will leave when I say it's time for you to leave."

He pointed to three chairs in front of his desk.

"Now, if you will sit down, we'll get all of this sorted out."

The Doctor looked at Rose and Ianto and nodded. The three of them came around the chairs and sat down.

"That's better." Wormwood said smiling. "Now, first things first, I am Tobias Wormwood. I am the head of operations for this branch of Torchwood. I know who all of you are, of course. Especially you, Doctor, your exploits are legendary. I consider it an honor to finally meet you face to face."

The Doctor said nothing.

" Now, the obvious question is how you and your friends happened to find us, Doctor?" Wormwood said. "I realize the man on your right works for one of our branches, but the location of this base was kept hidden even from them. So, where did you find the information?"

"I didn't find it." The Doctor said.

Wormwood frowned.

"Then, how did you find us?" he asked.

"Well, it's a fascinating story, see we were all sitting around the fire and I said "I'm bored, let's go find something to do." And someone else said, "I know, let's go to Antarctica." And I screamed out, "Brilliant!" and we packed up and came out here. We were taking pictures of the penguins and we found this little hatch in the ground and we climbed down to warm up and find the loo and maybe a nice cup of tea and the next thing we know a guard pointed a gun in our faces and brought us in here like we were a bunch of criminals. Imagine that, we were just out for a bit of sightseeing and now we find ourselves having to defend ourselves when we did nothing wrong."

Wormwood sighed.

"I'm not in the mood for this, Doctor." He said to him.

"What? I'm giving you an explanation for us being here." The Doctor replied.

"I'm not a fool, Doctor, so don't treat me as such!" Wormwood snarled. "You didn't come out here on a whim, you were trying to find us and I think I know how you found out about us!"

"Oh really, how?"

"For several weeks now, we have tried to contact the Torchwood lab located under the Thames flood barrier and we've received no response. What do you have to say about that?"

"Really? You built a Torchwood under the flood barrier? Huh, imagine that. Bit soggy, don't you think? I imagine it would be hard to work with water dripping on your head, messing up your paperwork."

"I'm warning you, Doctor, don't mock me."

"I'm not mocking you. I know absolutely nothing about this other Torchwood."

"I believe you do. I think you and your friends destroyed it the same way you destroyed the one at Canary Wharf."

"Nope, absolutely, positively had nothing to do with that, whatsoever." The Doctor said shrugging.

He paused.

"When I say that, I'm refering to the one under the Thames, of course. I take full credit and complete pride in stopping the one at Canary Wharf." he added smiling proudly.

"Then what happened to the one under the flood barrier?"

"How should I know? I only just heard about the place from you! Maybe the workers got bored working underground and decided to go find better jobs. Maybe they got tired of slipping and sliding on the damp floors and looking at moldy walls. Maybe they just don't like you and decided to ignore you and your emails. Whatever happened, I had nothing to do with it, so could you get off my back?"

Wormwood gave him a long, hard stare as the Doctor feigned innocence.

"Why do I not believe you?" Wormwood finally said.

"Search me. Maybe it's because you work for an organization that has been falsely accusing me and my friends of committing all sorts of crimes and slandering my good name every chance they get? I hope you know that the founder of your fine organization was most likely turned into a werewolf and therefore couldn't be trusted. Werewolves are famous for their horrendous mood swings; Rose and I witnessed that personally. The old crone knighted us and two minutes later she was ranting and raving to our faces about us being sorcerers and using black magic and upsetting her prim, prude monarchy with our wild bohemian ways. The way she was going on, I half expected her to start accusing us of inciting the women of Britain to start wearing dresses just below the knee and ripping the little skirts off the table legs. Needless to say, Rose and I got out of there in a hurry and once we were back in the TARDIS, we breathed a sigh of relief because we thought we were free of that loon, but nope, one hundred and eighteen years later, she's still around making our lives miserable. Anyway, sorry to get off on a rant about the old buzzard, I do tend to go off on a tangent sometimes, so you'll have to forgive me; now you were saying something about not believing me?"

Wormwood leaned back in his chair and glared at the Doctor.

"I could have your friends tortured, maybe then you would finally tell me the truth." He finally said.

"Uh, no, torturing my friends would make me do two things. One, it would make me clam up more and two it would piss me off and cause me to fly off in a rage and tear this place to bits. I don't know if you have this tidbit in the rather extensive file I know you lot keep on me, but one of the many names I'm known by is the Oncoming Storm. Now, looking at me and my gorgeous baby face, you might think that was just a cute nickname the Daleks thought up, but I can assure you it is far from that. As Rose will tell you, it's not a pretty sight when I get enraged and many a foe has had their ass handed to them on a platter because they underestimated me and my jovial, easygoing manner. Isn't that right, Rose?"

"Yup." She said.

"So, I would advise against torture." He finished up.

Wormwood glared at him. He got up from his desk and walked towards the door.

"Oh, are we free to go then?" the Doctor said looking around at him.

Wormwood didn't reply. He opened the door, leaned out and began conversing quietly with someone. A few minutes later, he walked back to his desk as three guards came into the room and shut the door.

"Since you are uncooperative, my guards will escort your friends to a holding cell until we decide what will be done with them." He said.

"What about the Doctor?" Rose asked.

Wormwood smirked.

"He's going to be taken to one of the labs for further questioning." He said.

Rose leapt to her feet and stepped in front of the Doctor.

"No, sit down. I'll be alright." The Doctor said grabbing her wrist.

Rose looked down at him. She nodded and sat back down.

"I will go with the guard, but you're wasting your time. I keep telling you I don't know anything." The Doctor said shrugging. "I have no idea what happened to this other Torchwood."

"We shall see. But, if it turns out you are telling the truth…well, then, we resort to plan 2."

"Oh, really, sounds intriging. What is plan 2 then?"

He gave him an evil grin.

"Dissection, Doctor."

Both Rose and Ianto leapt to their feet. They started towards Wormwood, but the guards seized them.

"Doctor!" Rose said struggling.

The Doctor leapt up trying to free her from the guard. Suddenly, the guard behind him brought the butt of his gun up and hit him hard in the back of the head. Rose screamed as the Doctor fell forward smacking his forehead on the edge of the desk.

"DOCTOR!" she screamed as the guards dragged her and Ianto out the door.

Wormwood followed them and shut the door behind them. He walked back to the unconscious Doctor lying in a heap in front of the desk.

"Sorry, Doctor, hate to do this to you, but you know, the motto of Torchwood is if it's alien, it's ours and I believe in that one hundred percent."

He looked at the guard still standing behind the chair.

"Take him to the lab and prepare him. I will supervise his interrogation personally."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

"Let us out!" Rose screamed as she pounded on the locked door.

"Somehow, Rose, I don't think that's gonna work," Ianto said sitting in the corner.

Rose sighed and stepped away from the door.

"There has to be a way out, Ianto. We gotta get outta here and go find the Doctor before they open him up and kill him."

"How? I don't have a lock picking device on me," He said. "How about you?"

"Nope, and I don't have the Doctor's sonic screwdriver on me. Hopefully no one knows about it, although with all the information they have on him, I highly doubt it."

She slammed her hands against the wall.

"And they took away our communicators so we can't talk to Jack and the others." She said.

"So, all we can do is sit and wait for an opportunity to present itself." Ianto said.

Rose slid down to the floor beside him.

"Yup, and I hope the opportunity comes sooner than later before the Doctor ends up on display somewhere.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack sighed as he leaned against the locked door.

"Yup, that was definitely a bad move going into a room with only one door and not posting a look-out," He muttered. "I think if we get out of this alive, we should avoid that blunder in the future. But then again, they probably knew we were there so it probably wouldn't have helped anyway."

"Do you think they got the others?" Gwen asked him.

"I hope not," Jack replied.

He jerked his head around when he heard the door unlocking. He stepped back and tensed his muscles as Tosh, Gwen and Owen came up behind him and prepared to rush whoever was opening the door.

The door opened and all of them stopped short when they saw a guard pointing a semi-automatic gun in their faces.

"On second thought, maybe rushing the guard isn't such a great idea." Jack said.

"Step back from the door or I shoot." He said.

Jack nodded as he and others backed up.

The guard looked off to his right and nodded. He stepped back and another guard entered carrying a tray laden with food.

"You're going to be here awhile," The guard holding the gun said to them. "Mister Wormwood is busy at the moment, but when he's done, he wants to talk to you."

"Where are our friends," Jack demanded. "What's happened to them?"

"I don't know. Maybe if you lot were smart enough to stick together, you would know." The guard taunted them.

The other guard finished putting the tray on the floor and walked back out.

"Mister Wormwood will be with you in awhile. In the meantime, eat up. I'm sure you must be hungry after walking all over Antarctica."

The guards smirked as they walked back out, closed the door behind them and locked it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor came to and looked around. He was stripped to the waist and was strapped down to a metal table in a white room. The only other things in the room were a small metal chair, a metal cabinet and what looked like oxygen tanks sitting in the corner of the room.

The Doctor tried the restraints, but they were tied tight around his wrists, ankles, legs and chest. He laid his head back on the table and waited for someone to enter the room.

About five minutes later, the door opened and Wormwood entered followed by two men in white lab coats.

"Oh good, you're awake," Wormwood said smiling at the Doctor. "I'm eager to begin and I didn't want to wait for you to wake up."

"I told you I don't know anything," the Doctor protested. "I don't know anything about this other Torchwood. The only one I knew about was the one at Canary Wharf."

"Then how did you find out about this one?"

"I told you, I stumbled onto it."

"In the middle of Antarctica, under the ice and snow? I find that very hard to believe, Doctor."

"He opened a drawer and pulled out a clear, plastic, face mask with a long hose attached to it. He attached the hose to the nozzle of one of the tanks. He walked back over to the Doctor.

"What's that for?" the Doctor asked.

"Torchwood has developed a new form of truth serum that is in gas form. It's easier to work with and creates less waste. If you will not tell me the truth voluntarily, then I will make you do it."

One of the lab techs grabbed his head and lifted it up and he slid the mask over his mouth and nose.

"Turn it on setting two," He said to the tech.

The tech nodded. He walked over and turned the nozzle. A hissing sound filled the room and Wormwood watched as the Doctor got a dazed look on his face.

"Now, Doctor, how did you find out about us?" he asked.

"I followed the map," The Doctor said in a dull voice.

Wormwood frowned.

"Map? What map?" he asked.

"Google map. They gave me the exact directions to this place."

Wormwood stared at him.

"What? Google map actually knows where we're at?" he said incredulously.

"Yes, they gave me the exact distance. It's very handy." The Doctor slurred out. "I use it quite frequently when I'm traveling time and space."

Wormwood shook his head.

"That can't be right," He said

"Actually, no it isn't," the Doctor said. "See, I'm not really under the influence of the gas. I don't know if you know this, but I have this thing called a respiratory bypass system that allows me to switch off my breathing."

The dazed look was gone in an instant and the Doctor smiled up at him.

"So, you see, gassing me doesn't work," He said in a cheerful voice. "Sorry."

Wormwood let out an enraged yell and ripped the mask off his face.

"Oi, watch it, you got my nose when you did that!" the Doctor said indignantly.

Wormwood threw the mask on the top of the tank and turned it off.

"I grow tired of these games, Doctor," he yelled at him. "I want answers and I want them now!"

"Well, tough, cause I'm not gonna give them," the Doctor said. "So you might as well cut me open, since I know that's what you're gonna do with me when this interrogation is done!"

Wormwood stared at him for a moment and then stomped out of the room.

"Wow that was quite a torture session. I'm just completely exhausted," the Doctor said when he slammed the door behind him. "How will I ever recover from their hellish torment? My poor mind will never be the same now. Oh, woe is me. What will they do to me next, tickle me with a feather?"

He glanced over at the lab techs.

"So, you guys get a lot of benefits working here?" he asked them. "Frequent breaks? Long lunches? You have to clean penguin poo off your cars before you go home at night?"

The lab techs turned away and ignored him.

"Fine, I'm just trying to engage you both in polite conversation since I'm strapped to a table with nothing else to do. But, if you want to be rude and not talk to me, then I'll entertain myself."

He stared up at the ceiling.

"WHO LET THE DOGS OUT, WHO, WHO, WHO, WHO," he sang in a loud, obnoxious voice. "WHO LET THE DOGS OUT, WHO, WHO, WHO, WHO."

He glanced over when he saw the techs turn their heads and glare at him.

"What, you won't talk to me, so I'll sing to myself. Gotta have something to do while the hours pass by." He said.

The lab techs looked at each other and shook their heads. Sighing they looked back at the door.

"OH, I WOULD WALK 500 MILES AND I WOULD WALK 500 MORE, JUST TO BE THE MAN WHO WALKS A 1000 MILES TO---"

The door opened.

"Oh, bollocks, I was just getting going." The Doctor said sadly. "Oh well, back to the grueling torture sess---"

He was cut short when Wormwood shoved Rose, bound and gagged, into the room. He smirked at the Doctor's shocked expression.

"Now, Doctor, maybe the truth will finally come out," he said.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

The Doctor stared at Rose kneeling on the floor before him. He saw the worried look in her eyes and looked up at Wormwood who was giving him a smug look.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" he yelled at him

"What's wrong, Doctor? Don't like me messing with your friends?" he said. "If I can't get the truth out of you, perhaps I can get the truth out of her."

"I'm warning you, Wormwood, torturing Rose is a very bad idea."

"Who said anything about torturing her? I'm going to give her the truth gas." Wormwood replied gesturing to a lab tech to hand him the gas mask. "Because as far as I know, Rose doesn't have any respiratory bypass system, does she?"

He took the gas mask from the tech's hands and slipped off the gag.

"Doctor!" Rose yelled at him as he slipped the mask over her mouth and turned on the gas. "I won't talk, I won't say anything! I…"

The Doctor watched anguished as Rose trailed off and her eyes glazed over.

"You bastard." He muttered.

Wormwood walked around Rose and leaned on the lab table.

"Now, Rose, you will tell me how you found this place."

"The Doctor hacked into Torchwood's database and found an email mentioning the location." Rose said in a dull voice.

"Did you know about the Torchwood under the flood barrier?"

"Yes."

Wormwood raised his eyebrow and looked back at the Doctor. Ignoring the Doctor's glare, he turned back to Rose.

"Were you responsible for the destruction of the Thames Torchwood?"

"No."

Wormwood was taken aback.

"Really, then, what happened to it?"

"The Widow destroyed it and killed all the people working there."

"The Widow?"

"The genetically altered Racnoss/Human that Torchwood had no right to create." The Doctor said angrily.

"Oh yes, I remember getting a couple of emails about that," Wormwood said nodding. "Some experiment of theirs."

He looked at Rose.

"What happened to the Widow?" he asked her.

"She kidnapped the Doctor and when Jack and I went to free him, we ended up getting in a battle and she accidentally fell on my knife and was killed."

"Okay, so then what happened?"

"The Doctor was furious that Torchwood had created the Widow and caused the deaths of innocent people, so he swore that he would put all Torchwoods out of commission once and for all starting with the one in Antarctica."

Wormwood raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, is that so, Doctor?" he said looking back at him. "So, that's why you've brought your little gang all the way out to the frozen wastelands of Antarctica?"

"Yes, because I intend to put a stop to you once and for all. You and the other Torchwoods have been a menace for far too long!"

"Oh, I beg to differ, Doctor. I believe it's you who are the menace. When you and your gang destroyed the facility at Canary Wharf, you also destroyed years of precious research and development. Research that could have been used to defend the planet from alien threats like you."

"I wasn't the one that destroyed Canary Wharf. The Daleks and Cybermen were responsible for that. You lot are the ones who brought about your own destruction. You made the Cybermen's void crossing possible with your little ghost shifts. So, if you should be blaming anyone, it should be your own people. As for being a threat, if it wasn't for me and Rose, the Earth would be overrun with Daleks and Cybermen and there would be no one left for you to protect. I have saved this world more times than I can count and it seems lately every time I turn around, you lot seemed to be involved. I considered it an honor to put the Canary Wharf Torchwood out of commission. And I won't stop until this facility and all the other secret bases are destroyed for good."

Wormwood smirked.

"How are you gonna do that, Doctor, when you are strapped down to a table?"

"Oh, little leather straps aren't gonna hold me for long. Who do you think taught Houdini all his greatest tricks? Man is a legend because of little old me. There are very few who can hold me for long. I always find a way to escape and when I do, woe to those who tried to imprison me."

"Then we must make sure you don't escape then."

"Really and how are you gonna do that?"

"Cryo-stasis."

The Doctor frowned.

"Excuse me?"

"Cryo-stasis, Doctor. We'll freeze you and put you to sleep while we figure out what to do with you. You see, I've been thinking it over and you're just too valuable to cut open and dissect. All that knowledge you have in your brain. All the things you've seen and know. All that information should be in Torchwood's hands. We just need to harvest it. Unfortunately, the technology is in another one of our labs, so we'll put you in suspended animation so we can move you without any resistance."

He looked back at Rose and took the oxygen mask off her face.

"Now, as for your charming companion. Perhaps, we can do the same for her?" he said handing it to a lab tech.

"No, leave her alone!"

"After all, she's been traveling with you for awhile; she must have a few secrets of her own stored away in her head."

"Leave her be. You can put me in suspended animation, but let her and my friends go!"

"And have them lead others here or mount an attack on their own? You must be crazy to think we would just let them walk out the front door like that."

He stroked Rose's hair.

"Now, perhaps, if we drained their minds and gave them new, specially created identities so they wouldn't remember this place, then maybe we could let them go."

"No!"

"Then, which is it, Doctor, because the only other way we will allow them to leave is in a body bag. Maybe it would be different if your friends weren't so loyal to you, but they are, which creates a problem for us."

"I want to be frozen with the Doctor." Rose said.

"No, I won't allow that, Rose."

She looked at him.

"I go where you go." She said to him.

"Aw, how sweet is that?" Wormwood said.

He bent down to her.

"Do you love the Doctor, my dear?"

"More than anything."

"Would you die for him?"

"Yes."

"Aw, how cute." Wormwood said straightening back up. "You have a human girlfriend. It's just like a real life Mork and Mindy. Well, you know we could put you both in the cryo-stasis chamber together. That way you can be together while you sleep."

"No, let her go!"

"I told you, Doctor, if I let her go I'll have to drain her mind and give her a new identity first. And if I do that, your little girlfriend will forget all about you."

"You bastard!"

"Course we could take them outside, make them kneel in the snow and blow their brains out, that's another option. But that's kinda messy; maybe we could just push them out in the snow, lock the door and let them freeze to death. So, what'll it be, Doctor? What would you like us to do to them? Seems like the only option you have is to have Rose frozen with you."

The Doctor looked at Rose who was staring up at him quietly. His hearts ached and he suddenly regretted bringing his friends along with him. He sighed knowing that there was only one option. She would have to be put into cryo-sleep with him. At least that way they could stay alive long enough to think of an escape plan once they were revived. He looked back at Wormwood who was staring at him expectantly.

"What happens to the others?" he asked him.

"Ah, well, see they work for Torchwood which means that they will be handled differently than you and Rose. You see, Torchwood generally deals with troublesome employees by draining their minds and implanting new identities so they won't remember who we are in case they want to come back and cause trouble. I'm sure that's what will become of them."

He leaned over and grinned when the Doctor glowered at him.

"See, this is why having companions is a bad idea, Doctor. If they get caught along with you, they end up suffering just as much as you do."

He signaled to the lab techs and they grabbed Rose by her arms and hauled to her feet.

"Doctor." She said as Wormwood walked over to the door.

"Oh Rose, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He said.

"I'm not afraid, Doctor, we'll be together." She said to him.

The Doctor stared at her lovingly as the door opened and two guards entered the room carrying the Doctor's clothes in their hands.

"Now, I'm going to let you get up and get your clothes back on and I want you to behave or I'll order these guards to kill Rose and then kill your friends. Got that?"

The Doctor nodded.

Wormwood took the clothes from the guards. One of them pointed his gun at Rose while the other started undoing the straps.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

The Doctor and Rose were herded at gunpoint towards the cryo-stasis room. As they walked, they went through the huge room where they had been captured earlier. Several people stopped and stared at them for a moment before going about their business. The Doctor noticed that a few of those people seemed to recognize who he was. He could see them whispering to each other and pointing but they soon dispersed and went back to work like everyone else.

They went through another set of doors and exited the room. Wormwood led them down a series of corridors until they came to a set of double doors at the end of one hallway. He keyed in a code on the keypad as the two guards kept watch over the captives. They heard the door click and Wormwood opened it.

"After you." He said gesturing inside.

The Doctor took Rose's hand and both of them walked past Wormwood into the dimly lit room. They stopped just inside and looked around. The room was painted white like all the other rooms. There were a couple of control consoles on the right side of the room that had huge thick wires jutting out the bottom. The wires went across the room like huge snakes to a series of capsule like chambers that reminded him of Lazarus's machine. Beside those were some capsules that were lying horizontally on the floor. When the Doctor looked in the window on one of the upright capsules, he could see an alien sleeping in it as a freezing mist rose up continuously from the floor. Its opal colored skin was coated with small specks of ice.

"A Doriac." The Doctor murmured.

Rose looked at him.

"Huh?"

The Doctor pointed to the alien.

"That's a Doriac."

"Very good, Doctor."

They turned and looked at Wormwood who was now standing behind him.

"We brought his spaceship down about a year ago. They were flying over Antarctica and came within range of our laser cannon. We shot it down and salvaged what we could from the ship for research purposes. There were two of them originally, but we decided to dissect the other Doriac since we could afford to kill one. Interesting species actually, they have green blood and two stomachs. And apparently, they communicate telepathically so that eliminated the screaming when we cut him open."

The Doctor gritted his teeth and advanced towards him, but was stopped when a guard thrust his gun in his face.

"But, not to worry, Doctor. Like I said, you are one of a kind, there's no way we're going to dissect you. We're just gonna put you on ice for awhile. Now if you and your companion will move towards the capsule that's sitting on the ground, we can get started."

The Doctor glared at him. He took Rose's hand and both of them walked over to the capsule. Wormwood walked over to one of the control consoles and pushed a black button near the top. The door slid back and lights came on inside revealing a white, padded interior. Rose turned and embraced the Doctor. He held her protectively.

"Do you want me to go first?" The Doctor asked gently.

"It doesn't matter." Rose said dully.

The Doctor nuzzled her head and then let go of her. He stepped into the capsule and held out his hand. Rose took it and he helped her inside. They knelt down together and lay down on their sides facing one another. They embraced and clung to one another as the capsule door slid back encasing them in the padded tomb. Once the door sealed shut a small light clicked on over their heads allowing them to see one another.

"This won't hurt, Rose. The freezing happens quickly. It'll be like going to sleep, I promise." The Doctor said gently. "You won't even have time to feel the cold."

"Oh, Doctor, I love you so much." Rose whispered.

The Doctor smiled.

"I love you too, angel." He said. "No matter what happens, we'll be able to escape. We always do."

The Doctor's ears perked up when he heard a rumbling sound at their feet.

"Here it comes, Rose, the liquid nitrogen gas is filling the chamber under our feet and in about a minute it'll shoot up and freeze us.

Rose glanced down at the tiny grate near their feet. She looked at the Doctor and snuggled close to him. The Doctor put his face close to hers.

"Close your eyes." He whispered as he held her close to him.

Rose nodded and shut her eyes. The Doctor stared at her for a moment and then with a sigh, closed his eyes. A few seconds later, there was a whoosh and liquid nitrogen gas filled the capsule freezing them both instantly. The light clicked off a moment later and the nitrogen gas began to hiss up continuously through the vent as the Doctor and Rose clung to one another in an icy death-like sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Wormwood glanced down through the window at the Doctor and Rose. He snickered when he saw them embracing one another.

"Aw, they make such a cute couple. Maybe we can rent them out to circuses and freak shows. Ten quid to see the frozen alien and his girlfriend. I bet we'd make a fortune doing that."

He sighed.

"Aw, well, we'll worry about that later. For the moment, we need to get them shipped out to our lab in the Sahara so they can take a look at their minds."

He walked over to a small black phone on top of the console. He picked up the receiver and dialed a three digit number. After a moment, someone picked up on the other end.

"Yes, I need you to round up about five men and come to the cryo-stasis chamber. I have a capsule that needs to go to our lab in the Sahara. I also need someone to prepare the space skimmer to take them there."

He paused a moment.

"Only one capsule. With two people inside. The Doctor and Rose Tyler. I will phone ahead and make sure they are expected."

He nodded and hung up the phone. He lifted it up again and dialed another number.

"Hello, can I speak to Carl Jenkins?" he said to someone.

There was a two minute pause and then he heard Jenkins pick up the phone.

"Hello Jenkins, this is Tobias…Fine, I'm fine. Listen, I have a cryo capsule being shipped your way. I need you to do brain scans on the people inside and send me back the results….Well, actually one of the people is the infamous Doctor and the other is his companion, Rose Tyler. Both of them were caught breaking and entering here with those renegades from the Cardiff Torchwood. We'll take care of them, but we want to find out just what the Doctor and Rose know. The information they have will be valuable to us, not to mention it'll eliminate the alien menace once and for all. Oh! And also, I found out that the Doctor is intending to destroy all the Torchwood branches like he did at Canary Wharf, so keep a close eye on him once he's awake."

Wormwood nodded. He glanced over as the door opened and six guards came in.

"Yes, the guards are taking the capsule out now. We're loading it on the skimmer and it should be at your base in a couple of hours."

Wormwood smiled.

"Thanks. Just keep us informed of what you find from the scan, after that you can do whatever you want with them….okay, well you take care too. Tell Muriel and the kids I said hi, and hopefully I'll be able to meet you in a month or two and take you out to dinner, my treat."

He laughed.

"Okay, talk to you later. Bye."

He hung up the phone and watched as the guards grabbed a series of handles along the outside of the capsule and lifted it up. Wormwood watched as the guards walked the capsule out of the room.

"Ah, that takes care of that problem then." He said to himself.

He gestured to the guards that were left.

"Follow me, we're going to handle the renegades next." He said to them.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

"Set it there."

The pilot of the skimmer pointed to an empty space near the back of the craft. The six men sat the capsule down and chained it down to the floor. Once they finished up, the six men left the craft. The pilot looked at the co-pilot and both of them walked over to the capsule. They looked in the window at the frozen lovers inside.

"This is the Doctor?" the pilot said in disbelief. "This is the man who is supposed to be a threat to planet Earth? The man is skinnier than Olive Oyl."

"Yeah, I was expecting some big, brawny, evil alien. Not a thin, little pretty boy." The co-pilot replied.

The pilot shrugged.

"Ah, well, appearances can be deceiving, I guess. Anyway, it doesn't matter. All that matters is getting these two to the lab in the Sahara. So, let's get going."

The co-pilot nodded. They walked over to the control panel, closed the door, turned on the cloaking device and waited until a huge door slid open over the craft before they flew up and then out over the icy wastelands heading for the desert base.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Wormwood smiled as the door opened and Jack, Gwen, Owen and Tosh were herded into his office. Ianto had already been sent for and he was sitting quietly in the chair he had occupied earlier while a guard stood against the wall near him.

"Ianto, you alright?" Jack asked walking over to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said.

Jack smiled. He looked over at Wormwood as the rest of the team came up behind him.

"Have a seat." He said to Jack.

Jack sat down in the chair next to Ianto as the others clustered around the chairs.

"Where are the Doctor and Rose?" Jack demanded.

"The Doctor and Rose are taking a little trip." Wormwood replied.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Jack said.

Wormwood ignored him.

"So, at last I meet the infamous Jack Harkness and his team face to face." He said. "Funny, you don't seem like much of a threat up close."

"How are I and my team a threat?" Jack asked.

"You won't follow the mission statement of Torchwood." Wormwood said.

"What statement is that? If it's alien, it's ours?" Jack said.

"No, Torchwood's mission statement is to protect and defend planet Earth from any alien threats using whatever means at our disposal. If it's alien, it's ours is our motto. There's a difference."

"Well, I suppose the reason we don't follow the mission statement is because we don't agree with it." Jack said folding his arms over his chest. "I don't believe you should fight aliens with whatever weapon you can lay your hands on because some weapons aren't meant to be in the hands of humans, especially irresponsible humans who don't give a damn who they hurt as long as they eliminate the so-called alien threat. Secondly, some of these so-called alien threats are not threats at all. They are peaceful aliens like the Doctor."

"The Doctor is hardly peaceful. He is a dangerous menace." Wormwood replied.

"Dangerous to who, you?"

"Yes. He was the one who destroyed Canary Wharf."

"He didn't destroy Canary Wharf." Ianto said. "That was Torchwood's fault. It was because of them that the Cybermen invaded and converted others into Cybermen. Because of Torchwood, I lost my girlfriend. That's why I joined Jack's group, because unlike you lot, we hold ourselves responsible for our actions."

"You lost your girlfriend and yet you swear your loyalty to the Doctor?" Wormwood asked him.

"I just told you, the Doctor wasn't responsible for what happened to Lisa. The Cybermen were the ones who tried to convert her and the reason the Cybermen were there was because of Torchwood and their little ghost shifts. You can shift the blame to the Doctor all you want, but the truth still stands. The Doctor had nothing to do with it. He and Rose were the ones who nearly sacrificed themselves putting the Cybermen and Daleks into the void. They fixed the mess Torchwood made. That is why I don't blame him for what's happened."

"And if the Doctor were here right now, he would tell you the same." Jack said.

"He did tell him, Jack." Ianto said. "I was sitting right here with him and Rose and he said the exact same thing I said, but he won't listen because he refuses to believe the Doctor isn't evil."

Wormwood ignored him. He looked up at the three standing behind the chair.

"What about you three? Why are you loyal to the Doctor?" he asked them.

"I met the Doctor back when I was working as a medical examiner. He was friendly to me. I never perceived him as a threat and I still don't."

"Nor I." Gwen said. "The Doctor has never threatened us in any way."

"The Doctor brought you out here to Antarctica. Hasn't he threatened your life that way? You didn't know what was out here. You could have ended up getting lost and freezing to death." Wormwood said to her.

"The Doctor may have brought us out here, but it was our decision to go. the Doctor never forced us to go along with him or do anything we didn't want to do. We went because we believed in what he was doing. The Doctor isn't a menace. He cares about the people of Earth."

"I agree." Owen said. "The Doctor tries to help humanity out, not destroy it. Jack trusts him, and I do too."

"So, now that you've heard all of our reasons for liking the Doctor, you will answer my question. Where is he and where is Rose? What do you mean they took a little trip?"

Wormwood smirked.

"Well, I mean, that they have both been frozen, put into suspended animation and are now flying in an alien craft towards our lab in the Sahara so we can drain their memories from their heads."

The team sat staring at him in shock.

"You bastard!" Jack said leaping up.

He glanced over at the guard as he ran up and thrust his gun in his face.

"Go ahead, pal, and shoot!" he snarled at him. "It won't do you a bit of good, trust me!"

He focused his attention back on Wormwood.

"I swear to God, if my friends end up dead. I will make your life a living hell!" he said through gritted teeth.

"Once we get through with you, you won't remember your friends." Wormwood said smirking.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Jack said.

"It means that we are going to reprogram your brains and give you new identities. Once that is finished, you won't be able to remember who we are let alone the Doctor and Rose."

The team stared at him in shock.

"And you wonder why we washed our hands of this organization." Jack spat out. "The Doctor's right, Torchwood needs to be stopped before they ruin any more lives."

"Sadly, you'll never get to carry out that mission." Wormwood replied. "The Doctor and Rose are about to have their brains drained and you and your friends will have your brains reprogrammed so there will be no one to stop us. Shame, I was kinda curious to see how seven people could pull it off especially since there a lot more labs than you think. While you and your little team was off flaunting the rules and doing your own thing, we were setting up labs all across the world and even have a few off-world. Torchwood is more powerful than you can imagine, so bringing all of them down is a pretty tall order even for the legendary Doctor. Even if you were to escape there is no way you could shut them all down so you might as well accept defeat and go quietly so we can brainwash you. The quicker you submit, the quicker we can get it over with and all of us can get back to business as usual."

"You may think you've won, but don't count the Doctor out yet." Jack said as the others nodded in agreement. "I've seen him get out of sticky situations before and win out against impossible odds. You may think that he and Rose are finished, but all you've done is made it possible for two Torchwoods to be destroyed at the same time."

Wormwood snorted.

"Yeah, well, I'm not hitting the panic button just yet." He said. "Like I said, by the time we get through with you, you won't know who you are, let alone care about Torchwood's destruction."

He nodded to the guard.

"Take them to the lab and prepare them for their reprogramming." He said waving them away.

Jack glared at him. He nodded at Ianto and both of them stood up as the guard pointed his gun at them.

"You haven't heard the last of us." He said. "And you haven't heard the last of the Doctor and Rose."

Wormwood ignored them. He concentrated on paperwork as the guard herded the team out of the room and shut the door.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

The skimmer flew over the Sahara Desert. As it sailed over the sands, it passed a few nomads. Thanks to the cloaking device, it remained undetected by them. It flew on until it reached the heart of the Sahara, a place where few traveled to except for nomads and even then they didn't linger for long. They reached their destination and hovered over the sand. The pilot pressed a button and a huge door slid back revealing a large hangar bay. The skimmer slowly sank down through the door and landed in the huge room. The door slid back overhead as the pilot shut the engines off. The co-pilot got on the radio.

"We have landed. We need men to come and take the capsule off the ship." He said.

"Yes, sir." He heard someone reply.

They unbuckled their seatbelts and the pilot lowered the ramp. A few minutes later, eight guards appeared in the hangar bay.

"They're right there." The pilot said pointing to the capsule.

The guards walked over, took the chains off and picked up the capsule. The pilot and co-pilot watched as they took it down the ramp and out of the hangar bay. Once they were clear, the pilot raised the ramp, started the engines and prepared to go back to Antarctica.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor gasped as he felt a hot steam envelop him. He opened his eyes and looked around in confusion. It took him a minute to register where he was and who was beside him.

"Doctor?" Rose murmured.

The Doctor kissed her forehead.

"It's alright, Rose. I'm here." He said to her.

"Where are we? Are we still in the cryo-stasis room?" she asked.

The Doctor looked up through the capsule window. Instead of the darkened room, he could see a fluorescent light burning overhead.

"I don't know. Somehow I don't think so." He said to her.

Rose looked up through the window with him. As they stared at the light, they suddenly saw a man leaning over to look at them. The Doctor tightened his grip on Rose as he gave the man a warning look. The man leaned back up and a few minutes later there was a hissing sound as the door slid back. The Doctor made a move to get up when suddenly he and Rose were surrounded by 8 men all pointing their semi-automatic guns at them. The Doctor held Rose close wondering what was going to happen to them. He got his answer when two of the men stepped aside and a red haired man in his late thirties stared down at them.

"Both of you get up slowly." He said. "Don't try anything or my men will shoot."

The Doctor and Rose kept their eyes on the guards and they sat up. Slowly they stood up as the guards kept their guns trained on them. They held one another as they bravely faced the circle of guns. The Doctor looked around and saw that they were in a white room that held a few crates in it, but otherwise it was empty. He knew now that they had been moved. Where they had been moved was the question, but he sensed that if he asked that, he wasn't going to get an answer. His suspicions were confirmed when someone slipped a blindfold over Rose's eyes and then someone put one on him obscuring his vision. He felt someone grab his arms and pull him.

"Gently, they're very valuable." He heard someone say.

The men helped him step out of the stasis chamber. He stood still feeling Rose step up beside him.

"The two of you will obey every command." They heard the man say. "You will not resist or you will both be killed without mercy. Is that understood?"

"Yes." The Doctor said.

"Yes." Rose said.

"Then start walking, my men will guide you." The man said.

The Doctor felt a tug on his arm. He offered no resistance; he only walked where the men led him. As he walked, he remembered every sound, every scent so that he could determine where they were. He sensed Rose beside him. He sensed that she was calm and he took comfort in that. At least she was safe for the moment and he would do everything in his power to see she stayed that way.

They walked along in silence. The Doctor's nose wrinkled as he smelled the scent of ammonia. It reminded him of a hospital. He hated hospitals. After a few more minutes of walking, he could no longer stand the silence. He had to make an effort to find out where they were.

"Where have you brought us?" he spoke aloud.

"You will find out in time, Doctor, just keep walking." A man replied

The Doctor sighed.

"Will we be allowed to see where we are or will we just wear these blindfolds 24/7?" he asked.

"The blindfolds will come off in a moment. I assure you nothing will happen to you or to Rose while you are blindfolded. I will not kill you unawares, Doctor, I am not that coldblooded."

The Doctor snorted.

"Well, it's nice to know when Rose and I finally die, we'll be fully aware of everything that's happening." He said bitterly.

"Are you going to put us back in the capsule when you're done with us?" Rose asked.

"That depends on how well you behave," The man said. "If you make trouble then yes, you will be put back into suspended animation. Keep that in mind when you're making your escape plans."

"So, in other words," the Doctor said. "We're just supposed to go quietly like sheep to the slaughter because if we don't we'll be frozen. But, if we don't resist, then we get our brains drained and become mindless vegetables. So, it's really a question of which is the lesser of two evils here."

"You don't have to have your brain emptied, Doctor," the man said. "You could cooperate with us willingly and give us your knowledge without mind probes."

"Become your servant then."

"If you like."

"Sorry, I scored low marks in my servitude class." The Doctor said.

"So, did I." Rose added.

"Well, we'll take your knowledge by force then, I guess."

_Or we'll just fight our way out and escape from here._ The Doctor thought_. Of course, this will be after we destroy this base. _

After a few minutes, the Doctor felt someone tug on his arm.

"We're here." The man said.

The Doctor and Rose stood still. He listened as someone unlocked a door and then they were led inside. The Doctor felt another tug on his arm and he stood still as he heard the sound of chairs scraping across the floor. The man pulled on the Doctor's arm and he let the man lead him over and sit him down. He heard the sound of Rose sitting down beside him and without thinking, he reached over, found her hand and held it.

After another minute, the blindfold was pulled off his face and the Doctor blinked as bright light flooded his eyes. Once his eyes adjusted, he noticed the red haired man sitting behind a desk across from him.

"Now, I will give you both another choice. You can sit here unrestrained and behave or you can resist and be tied to the chairs. What will it be?"

"We won't resist." The Doctor said quickly.

The man looked at Rose.

"I won't fight back. You don't need to tie me to the chair." She said quietly.

The man smiled and nodded. He waved the guards away.

"Excellent, then we can have a pleasant little chat here." He said as the guards exited the room. "So, let's begin."


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

"Allow me to introduce myself, Doctor, I am Carl Jenkins. It's a pleasure to meet you both. Of course you two need no introduction."

"Well good," the Doctor said. "I never liked formalities anyway."

He folded his arms over his chest.

"So," the Doctor continued. "Here we are in yet another room facing yet another man who will blather on about how I've done Torchwood wrong and how I deserve everything that's coming to me. So…is this whole meeting with the captives thing standard Torchwood procedure or something because this is the second time Rose and I have gone through this."

"I just want to meet the famous Doctor." Jenkins said shrugging. "I'm sure my colleague felt the same way. You are legend."

"Well, yeah, I am all that, I have to admit. It's always nice to meet my adoring public. I would give you an autograph, but I don't have a pen on me. Perhaps if I can borrow one of yours?"

Jenkins chuckled.

"Very droll, Doctor, that's another thing you're famous for, the ability to keep calm and crack jokes even when the threat of pain or death is hanging over your head."

"Does Torchwood also know that I'm a tremendous ballet dancer, I raise bandicoots for fun and profit and in my spare time I like to bungee jump, tend to my violets and knit sweaters for Rose? I also have the ability to shape shift. You ever see Alien? That was me playing the alien in the film. No makeup whatsoever, just 100 percent me. I pride myself on my academy award winning performance. Mind you, I got paid peanuts compared to Sigourney Weaver, but I'm still a part of film history so that more than makes up for it. Course I have tried a time or two to lay my eggs in Rose's stomach, but she's threatened to kick my balls up into my brain if I do it, so I've pretty much given up on seeing my beautiful children burst from her chest and skitter across the TARDIS floor. It was a great dream though. Maybe I can get Jack to do it, he's always ready, willing and able to help me out when---"

"Are you going to talk all night?" Jenkins asked.

"Why, you don't like hearing me? I thought you wanted to know all my innermost thoughts and feelings." The Doctor replied.

He looked at Rose.

"I'm sitting here doing what he commanded me to do and spilling my secrets to him and he gets angry about it." He said gesturing to him.

"I believe you know what Torchwood means when they told you they wanted your secrets."

"No, actually, you lot were pretty vague about it. You said you wanted my secrets, but you didn't specify which ones."

"He's right," Rose said. "You just said you wanted him to talk, so he's talking, he can't help it if he misinterpreted your vague command."

The Doctor smiled and patted her on the head.

"Yup, Rose Tyler, always willing to back me up in any situation." He said. "We've just grown so close now, we know what the other is thinking and we just finish each other's sentences all the time. She's my little plus one."

He paused.

"I do have to say though that us being on the same cycle now is rather disturbing to me, since I didn't start menstruating until she came along."

He looked down at his crotch.

"Or maybe I have a bleeding hemorrhoid and I'm misinterpreting it as menstruation? I mean I have no vagina, so any bleeding I do comes from my anus, so I'm not really sure if I'm on the rag or I'm in serious need of some Preparation H. But, I'm guessing it's the former since once a month I have this sudden craving for Cherry Garcia ice cream and Meryl Streep movies. I'm also screaming at Rose one minute and in tears the next. I tell you PMS is a huge pain in the arse."

The Doctor jumped when Jenkins slammed his fist down on the desk.

"That's enough!" he screamed.

"What? I'm just telling you all my secrets!" the Doctor protested. "And as far as secrets go, my having a period is a pretty big one. Except for Rose, you're the first person I've confessed to that I have to wear a tampon up my bum once a month---"

The Doctor grunted as Jenkins reared up and slapped him hard in the face.

"I told you to shut up, Doctor! You may think you're being cute, but if you keep this up, you'll be back on ice sooner than you think!"

"Well, considering the fact that I'll probably end up that way anyway, I might as well get my two pence in here!" the Doctor said angrily as he rubbed his cheek. "I don't know about Rose, but I'm tired of being made to sit in front of desks, being bored half to death while some irresponsible, self-important git rants and raves about how I'm the one who's gonna bring about the bloody apocalypse or something! I'm over 900 years old; if I was planning to destroy the Earth, I would have done it centuries ago! But, as I keep telling everyone, I don't have to destroy the Earth since you and your buddies do a pretty good job in my absence. First it was the Cybermen and Daleks, and then it was the Widow. So, tell me, what's next on your selfish little agenda? Accelerate global warming so you can work on your tan? Or will you do that by throwing the planet out of orbit and send it hurtling towards the sun? Oooo, maybe you can blow apart the moon and find out if the center is made of green cheese! There's a way for you lot to raise money for your activities. Torchwood brand green cheese harvested directly from the moon. The possibilities of mucking up the world are just endless, so spill, what do you have in mind for your next project? Oh, sorry, correction…what do you have in mind after you get done turning Rose and I into zombies? Because I'm sure that is a high priority since you wouldn't want us out there correcting all the damage you are doing. I mean, it would be a right drag for me and Rose to have to step in and put a stop to things, don't you think? Takes all the fun out of life."

Jenkins snorted.

"You are just as arrogant as the legends claim." He said.

The Doctor's eyes widened in shock.

"I'm arrogant? I'm not the one tampering with voids and mutating spiders into humanoid form!" he said angrily. "I'm not the one sitting behind a desk with a smug grin on his face because he thinks that if he just kills me, then everyone else on Earth will look the other way and let him and his organization continue harming the world in the name of planetary defense."

"Oh they will, Doctor, because you see ever since the general public has learned we are not alone in the universe there has been an outcry for someone to protect them from hostile elements and that's where we come in. Queen Victoria may have sat up this organization primarily to keep an eye on you, but it has grown and flourished in ways she could have never dreamed of. It's a huge responsibility keeping this planet safe from those who would wish us dead or enslaved, but Torchwood is more than up to the challenge."

"Are you aware that most species avoid this planet like the plague because they consider you nothing more than semi-intelligent pond scum?" the Doctor said. "Granted there are a few species like the Slitheen and the Sycorax who will attack and enslave people, but for the most part the universe at large prefers to go about its business and ignore the citizens of Earth. This whole defense you are mounting against the stars is a waste of time and taxpayer's money. Most aliens wouldn't step foot here even if you paid them to come."

"But you come here, don't you, Doctor? You come here and everywhere you go, you leave death and destruction in your wake."

The Doctor sighed angrily. He looked at Rose.

"Rose, how often do we come to Earth?" he asked her.

"Not very often, we came home to visit my mum before she went to the parallel universe, but other than that we're usually off exploring other planets."

"How much damage have we done to Earth?"

"Not much. Compared to Torchwood, we leave things pretty much intact." She said.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how much of a threat am I to Earth?"

"Negative ten."

The Doctor nodded at Rose.

"See, even Rose agrees I'm harmless. Course I know that doesn't matter to you since she and I will still be put through this brain drain thing regardless of what we say or do. Although why you want to look at Rose's brain is beyond me. No offense to her because she's been an amazing companion, but she's just a human. There's nothing of planetary significance in her memories."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rose shifting in her seat. He glanced at her with a quizzical look on his face. As Jenkins watched them closely, she quickly leaned into his ear.

"Bad Wolf." She said in a barely audible voice.

She leaned back over as the Doctor quickly feigned disgust.

"Rose, watch that crude potty mouth of yours." He said.

"Sorry, Doctor." Rose said feigning embarrassment.

He shook his head.

"Sorry, Rose says the most inappropriate things sometimes." He said apologetically.

"What did she tell you?" Jenkins asked.

"Oh, you really don't want to know. It's something that shouldn't be said in polite company."

Jenkins sighed.

"You must think I'm an idiot, Doctor. I know Rose said something to you and I'm pretty sure it wasn't a smutty comment. I heard the word bad but I didn't catch the rest of it, now what did she say?"

"I said it looked bad for me." Rose said. "Meaning that I'll have to undergo this brain drain thing when I really don't have anything to offer. The Doctor's right. I'm just an insignificant human."

Jenkins studied her.

"Then, you won't mind going first." He said.

"No, leave her alone!" the Doctor said to him.

"But, Doctor, if there really is nothing in her head, it won't take long." Jenkins said. "After all, if she really is as insignificant as you claim then we might as well get her out of the way so we can get on to you."

"Just focus on me, Rose is nobody. I'm the one you want."

Jenkins regarded him silently.

"Why are you suddenly so scared, Doctor? After all, the mind probe isn't that painful. We can sedate her and she'll feel no pain."

He leaned forward.

"Or are you scared because there really is something significant inside her head and you don't want us to know about it?"

"I'm warning you…"

"Yes, I know, mess with your companion and there'll be hell to pay." Jenkins said waving his hand dismissively.

He smirked.

"Here's a warning for you, Time Lord," he said saying the last two words in an ultra-snotty manner. "Mess with us and not only will we dissect you, we'll throw Rose back in the cryo-stasis capsule, freeze her and then bury the capsule under tons of dirt and concrete where she'll spend the rest of eternity in an icy sleep. I know you like to run the show, Doctor, but sadly you and your companion are both outnumbered and outgunned. So, both of you will get up, go to the door and go down to the lab so you can get your heads examined and I'm giving you until the count of ten to do it. If I reach eleven, Rose will go in the deep freeze and you will end up as a lecture topic for a biology class. Now move!"

The Doctor sighed. He took hold of Rose's hand and they both stood up. As they walked to the door, it opened and the guards pointed their guns at them.

"See you both later." Jenkins said cheerfully.

The Doctor shot him a look of death before he and Rose exited the room.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

"So, everyone clear on what we're supposed to do?" Jack asked as everyone sat in the cell in a huddle.

"We're supposed to fight our way out of here anyway we can?" Owen asked.

"Exactly. We have to get to the Doctor and Rose. Since we're going to have our brains drained, we might as well go down fighting." He said. "Besides, we need to get the TARDIS out of here before the goons here get their hands on it and rip it apart."

"Can you fly the TARDIS?" Gwen asked.

"Eeeeh, um…not exactly." Jack said.

"Then how do we get it to the Doctor and Rose?" Owen asked.

"We'll worry about that when we come to it. For the moment, we need to concentrate on getting out of here. Now, who wants to throw the soup?"

"I'll do it." Tosh said.

"Okay, and who wants the tray?"

"I'll take the tray." Ianto said.

"Great. Now all we need to do is wait for the guards to come and then it's go time."

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The Doctor and Rose walked down the corridor surrounded on all sides by guards. As they walked, he glanced over at her.

_I can't let them look inside her mind. I can't let them find the Bad Wolf._ He thought to himself. _We have to make a break for it. They may shoot us, but at this point we have nothing left to lose. It's either fight for our freedom or have our minds taken from us. At least if we get some distance and get a chance to hide, we can plan our next move. _

He glanced around at the guards and inched closer to Rose. Rose looked up at him and moved closer to his side.

"Oh Doctor," she whispered. "I'll let them drain my mind. As long as they don't hurt you, I don't care what happens to me."

The Doctor's hearts swelled with love and he squeezed her hand.

"They won't get that chance, Rose," the Doctor whispered in her ear. "We're gonna make a break for it now."

Rose looked up at him.

"Doctor?" she whispered. "Are you sure?"

"Rose, we have nothing to lose. They won't let us leave here alive. We know too much now and we're too much of a threat to them. It's better to go down fighting." He said. "Are you with me?"

"I'm always with you, I told you that." Rose replied. "No matter what you do, I will follow blindly."

"Good, just let me make the first move." He said. "We have the element of surprise now because they think we won't put up a resistance. Just follow my lead."

"Yes, Doctor."

The Doctor kissed her tenderly on the top of her head before he inched away. He stared at the guards intently as he calculated the best strategy for escape.

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Jack looked up as he heard the cell door unlocking. He nodded at Ianto and he quickly got beside the door as Tosh went to the other side with the bowl of soup.

"Get ready." He said to Owen and Gwen.

They nodded and stood on either side of them. Both of them tensed their muscles as the door opened and a guard stepped in carrying his gun. He stopped when he saw Jack, Owen and Gwen standing together in front of him.

"What is this?" he said.

The guard looked at Ianto and Tosh.

"Had a complaint about the soup. It wasn't to our liking." Jack said to him. "We wanted you to try it and see what you thought."

The guard gasped as Tosh threw the soup in his face.

"Now, Ianto!" Jack said.

Ianto slammed the tray down on his head knocking the guard out. All of them ran to him and quickly pulled off everything that could be of use to them.

"Gwen, take the revolver. I'll take the gun." Jack said handing it to her.

Gwen nodded. She checked to see if it was loaded. Satisfied it was, she held it down at her side as Owen grabbed the guard's key card and Tosh grabbed a set of keys and a small knife.

"Right, let's go, team! Let's show them what a bunch of renegades can do!" Jack said.

They all ran out the door and shut it behind them locking the guard in.

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The Doctor looked over at Rose and nodded. Rose nodded back. He glanced over at the guard directly beside him. Suddenly, without warning, he slammed his fist into the guard's head. As he slumped to the floor, he quickly snatched up his gun before the other guard's had time to react. He pulled Rose to him as he aimed the gun at them. While he kept the gun trained on them, Rose bent down and got the weapons, keys and key card off of the guard's body.

"Right, all of you will show us the way out and you will do it quietly or I will shoot you all in cold blood." He said as Rose stood back up and aimed the revolver at them.

One of the guards snorted.

"You don't have the---"

He gasped when the Doctor shot a bullet into the wall inches from his head.

"I'm sorry, were you about to say I don't have the guts?" he said nonchalantly. "Because if that was what you were going to say, I'd seriously consider rethinking that statement. I'm not afraid to use deadly force when necessary especially if Rose's life is at stake. Now, you can lead us to the exit or you can die, your choice."

The guards looked at each other and sighed as they put up their hands.

"Wise choice." The Doctor said nodding.

He looked at Rose.

"Now, the little lady is coming around to each of you. Kindly surrender your weapons and key cards to her, thanks."

Rose walked up to the first guard and held out her hand.

"You heard the Doctor. Surrender your weapons and key card." She said to him.

The guard slipped off his rifle and handed it to her. She handed it back to the Doctor and took his revolver and key card.

"Thanks." Rose said. "Now get your hands back up or my slightly insane alien boyfriend over there will turn your head into Swiss cheese."

The guard glared at her as he thrust his hands in the air.

"Thanks." Rose said moving to the next guard.

She disarmed each guard in turn handing the weapons back to the Doctor who put them in a pile at his feet. Everything went smoothly until she got to the fourth one down the line. She reached for his gun when he suddenly grabbed her wrist. He smirked at her, but that was quickly wiped off his face when a bullet whizzed by his head.

"I didn't tell anyone to lay hands on Miss Tyler." He said pointing the gun at him. "Let go of her wrist or I will shoot you right between the eyes."

Rose gasped as he spun her around and held her against his body.

"You won't shoot, not when your girl is in the way." He said smugly.

His eyes widened in surprise and he reeled back when a bullet grazed his temple. He slumped to the floor in a daze.

"Ah, but you see, I'm a dead-eye shot. Annie Oakley personally taught me and yes, I can do the whole shooting while looking in the mirror thing, so if I were you, I wouldn't try that again."

He smiled at Rose.

"Carry on." He said to her.

"Yes, Doctor." She said.

She disarmed the last two guards and stepped back to stand beside the Doctor. She grabbed one of the revolvers and pointed it at the guards.

"Now, get moving." The Doctor said.

"You won't escape." One of the guards said. "Even if you do get outside, there's nowhere to run."

"I believe I just said to get moving and considering what happened to your friend there, I would take that command seriously. Now go."

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Jack pressed his body up against the corridor. He looked around at his team who were standing on either side of him and against the far wall. All of them had managed to subdue guards and grab key cards and weapons. The only problem was one of the guards had managed to pull the alarm. They had shot a couple of guards in the legs and shoulders and immobilized them, but they knew there were more on the way.

"What do we do, Jack?" Tosh asked as she looked across the corridor at him.

Jack bit his lip as he thought.

"We need to try to take Wormwood hostage. Maybe the people here won't be so trigger happy if we have their boss in tow." He said.

"What if that doesn't work?" Owen asked.

"Then that scum goes down with us at least." Jack replied.

He glanced around the corner and nodded at his team. All of them formed a tight cluster and ran down the corridor trying to reach Wormwood's office.

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The Doctor looked over as the guards paused beside a metal platform.

"That's the exit. Get on it and it'll raise you up to ground level." One of the guards said.

"Excellent, thanks so much. And now that we know how to get out you won't be necessary anymore."

He smirked when he noticed the guards flinching.

"Nah, I'm not gonna kill ya." He said. "I only do that sort of thing as a last resort. However, since I can't have you following us or alerting others…."

He handed Rose a key card.

"Unlock that door there and see what's inside." He said gesturing to a door directly across from them.

Rose ran over, swiped the key card in the reader and opened the door. She looked inside.

"It's empty." She said to him.

"Perfect. Everyone inside then." The Doctor said cheerfully.

He herded them in the room as Rose stood by the door with her gun trained on them. Once they were inside, the Doctor shut the door and tested it. Satisfied it was locked, he nodded at Rose.

"Come on, let's get out of here before all hell breaks loose." He said to her.

They hopped onto the platform.

"Be ready for anything. They might have been lying." He said to her.

Rose nodded. She lowered the revolver to her side as the Doctor looked around and pressed a big black button. The platform shuddered and then slowly rose up towards the ceiling.

"You sure this thing isn't a trap and we're gonna end up crushed against the ceiling?" Rose asked as she looked up.

"Well, if it is, we're about to find out." The Doctor replied.

Rose felt a wave of relief when the ceiling opened upwards allowing them through. Her relief was short-lived, however, when the punishing heat and blowing sand hit her face. She coughed and inched closer to the Doctor's body for protection as he blinked and looked around.

"Oh Bollocks." The Doctor said. "This is what I was afraid of."

"Where are we?" Rose gasped out.

The Doctor sighed as he stared around at the sand dunes stretching for miles in every direction.

"I believe we're right smack dab in the middle of the Sahara Desert, Rose." He said grimly.


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

"Come in."

Jenkins looked up as a guard entered the room.

"Yes?" he said.

"Sir, the prisoners have escaped." The guard said.

"Have they now? Where are they at?"

"We believe they're outside the compound."

"You mean up above?"

"Yes, sir."

Jenkins snickered.

"Sir, what do you want us to do? Shall we retrieve them?"

"No, let the two of them try to get away. They'll succumb to heat and thirst quickly enough. Maybe a little run in the desert will teach them not to escape again. Just wait awhile and then go up and get them."

"Yes, sir."

Jenkins waved the guard away. As he went out and closed the door, Jenkins chuckled.

"Have fun trying to get out of the desert, Doctor, maybe you'll get a tan on the scrawny little body of yours."

Smiling, he went back to his paperwork.

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Rose looked around at the miles and miles of desert. She looked at the Doctor.

"Doctor, what do we do?" she asked him.

"I don't know, Rose. I know we can't go back. I'm sure the other guards have been alerted by now and they'll probably be waiting for us when we go back down."

"So, then, you think we should try to walk across the desert?" Rose asked.

The Doctor scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"I think we should try. At least try to find an oasis or some nomads that can take us to safety."

He cursed.

"Bollocks. I would give anything to have the TARDIS right now." He muttered.

He took Rose's hand.

"Let's just scout around right now and see what we can see. If there's nothing around, we'll go back down and face the guards. I just want to make sure we are well and truly stranded before we have to fight them."

Rose nodded. The Doctor looked around them and then pointed off to his right.

"The dunes don't look so bad that way. Let's go in that direction."

He smiled at Rose and the two of them walked off in search of water or help.

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The Torchwood team ran into the hangar bay. He raised his gun and shot into the air. As the employees scattered, he looked around at the various spaceships. He noticed one that looked pretty much intact and he ran towards it. The others followed them and they quickly ran up the ramp and got inside it.

"GET OUT!" he said to the two terrified employees huddled inside.

The two men quickly ran out past them and Jack ran over to the control panel. He pushed a button and shut the ramp behind them.

"You know how to fly this thing?" Tosh asked.

Jack nodded.

"It's a Xa'noc scout ship. I'm familiar with them." He said.

He glanced at the control panel. Gwen came up behind him. Her eyes widened when she looked out the window and saw several guards running up to the ship with guns drawn.

"Jack!" she said pointing out the window.

Jack glanced at them and looked back down at the control panel. He smirked and hit a small purple button. A laser bolt shot out from the front and nearly hit the guards. They scattered and ran as Jack chuckled.

He looked behind him and saw that there was ample space.

"Guys, I think we'll take this little baby for a spin. We'll get the TARDIS on board and then we'll fly to the Sahara and find the Doctor and Rose. But, first, I think we should leave our mark on this place. Let em know we've been here."

He pushed the purple button and watched as the laser bolt hit the wall across the way and made a huge hole in it. He looked over and hit an orange button. The engines roared to life.

"Find a seat, gang, we're gonna have to bust our way outta here." He called to his team.

The others scrambled to find seats and strap in while Jack maneuvered the ship around the room. He pushed the purple button repeatedly and grinned as the laser bolts hit walls and demolished the other ships and alien equipment.

"Oh yeah, just like playin' a video game." Jack said as he made holes in the walls.

He maneuvered the ship around until it faced the huge double doors. He scanned the control panel and found the button he was searching for.

"Here we go, guys." He said.

He hit a black button and a missile launched out and slammed into the wall beside the door. Jack quickly brought up the shields when the wall exploded and debris rained down everywhere. He grabbed a joystick and guided the ship out of the enormous hole in the wall. As they went down the corridor, Jack shot everything in sight.

"This is what you guys get for trying to erase our memories!" Jack yelled out as he pushed the purple button repeatedly.

He chuckled when guards leapt out in front of them, saw the ship and ran away yelling.

"That's right! Don't mess with us!" Jack yelled at them.

He pushed the black button and sent another missile into the wall in front of them. Tons of snow and ice fell through the hole.

"Be tough to heat this place when you got big holes in the walls, huh?" Jack said.

He grinned as a laser bolt shot past a terrified guard.

"If I were you, buddy, I'd get out of here and think about maybe being a security guard at the mall." He yelled out.

They turned a corner and Jack shot a missile at the narrow corridor in front of them. A gigantic blast later, it was widened considerably and Jack flew the scout ship down it. He navigated the ship through the facility leaving devastation in his wake.

Then, he saw him. Up ahead of the ship, he saw Wormwood run past escorted by a couple of the guards. Jack sped up and turned the corner behind them. He giggled when he saw Wormwood looked around at them with wide-eyed fear.

"Don't mind me. I'm just out for a stroll." Jack said to him.

He eased the ship directly up behind them and casually followed them as Wormwood and the two guards tried to escape them.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Gwen standing behind him.

"I'm being naughty." He said to her. "I'm tailgating the cars in front of me."

Gwen laughed.

"Watch this." Jack said.

He pushed a little lever and raised the laser blaster slightly. Then, he pushed the purple button and fired a blast directly over Wormwood's head. Gwen and Jack giggled when Wormwood shrieked and looked back at them.

"Sorry, finger slipped, my bad!" Jack yelled out.

He looked back at Ianto.

"Hey, Ianto, want to take a whack at this? Get back at Torchwood?"

Ianto nodded. He unbuckled and got up out of the seat.

"Just press the purple button here to activate the laser." Jack said as he came up beside him.

Ianto pushed the button and grinned when the laser bolt shot out and made a huge hole in the wall in front of them. His grin widened when he heard Wormwood and guards scream and shout curses at him. He shot off another round.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Jack said.

"Immensely." Ianto replied.

He fired off another round.

"Stop!" Wormwood screamed at the ship. "We surrender! We surrender!"

Jack looked around at the others.

"What do you guys think? Should we accept?"

"I think we should blast them into atoms." Tosh said.

Jack's eyes widened as he looked around at her.

"Whoa, Toshiko, did that just come outta you?" he said in disbelief.

He looked at Ianto.

"I'm starting to rub off on her, I guess." He said to him.

He looked down at Wormwood and the guards who were still yelling at him to stop as they ran on. He noticed they were starting to tire and he eased off on the power. He kept up with them until they were completely out of breath and then he stopped the ship. As Wormwood and the guards gasped for breath, the ship hovered nearby. Jack flipped a switch and activated a microphone.

"If we accept your surrender," He said to Wormwood. "You and everyone else will have to abandon this facility forever."

"You must be insane. I won't give up Torch…"

Wormwood gasped as Jack shot another laser bolt over his head.

"If you won't abandon it voluntarily, I will destroy it myself. Either way, this Torchwood will be put out of commission for good. So, what'll it be?"

Wormwood sighed angrily.

"All right, we surrender and we promise to abandon this facility. It doesn't matter anyway; there are a lot more out there. One loss won't matter."

"Oh, but we're just getting started." Jack said. "Between us and the Doctor and Rose, it won't take us too long to put Torchwood out of commission for good."

He paused.

"Speaking of, where exactly are our friends so we can go and pick them up? If you would be so kind as to give us directions that would be great."

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Rose gasped for breath as she finally reached the top of a sand dune with the Doctor. They stood side by side and looked out. Their hearts sank when they saw no signs of life and no signs of an oasis.

"Great." The Doctor muttered. "Just what I was afraid of. Who knows how many miles it is until we reach civilization."

"What do we do?" Rose asked.

The Doctor sighed angrily.

"We have no choice, we have to go back."

"And surrender?" Rose asked, frowning.

"No. No surrender. We fight our way through the compound until we find a ship or something that can take us out of here and back to Antarctica. Once we retrieve my TARDIS and the others then we can come back and finish this Torchwood off."

He took Rose's hand.

"Come on, let's head back." He said.

They turned and headed back down the sand dune.


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

The Doctor paused and looked around.

"I coulda sworn the entrance was right here." He said.

He looked over at Rose who was walking around trying to find the entrance with him.

"You see it?" he asked her.

"No, and I think you're right, the entrance was here, I'm sure of it."

She looked at the Doctor.

"The sand couldn't have blown over the entrance that quickly, could it?" she asked him.

"No, the wind isn't that strong right now." The Doctor said to her. "Even if the sand did drift over the entrance, we still should be able to see some of the door."

As he stared at the ground, he suddenly had a thought.

"Oh no." he murmured.

Rose looked at him.

"What, Doctor?" she said.

The Doctor kicked at the sand in frustration.

"They hid the door." He snarled.

"Hid the door?"

"Yes, they used a cloaking device or something like it to make the entrance invisible. That has got to be the answer."

He kicked the sand so hard Rose had to move aside to avoid being hit in the face.

"I knew our escape was way too easy." He said to her. "They knew what would happen if we escaped, that's why they didn't send reinforcements to come after us. That guard was right, we are trapped here and now they've hidden the door so we can't get back inside away from the sun."

"So, they're gonna kill us?"

The Doctor shook his head.

"I doubt it. We're still valuable to them. I'm sure they're gonna wait until we're near death before they come back up and get us. Teach us a lesson."

Rose wrapped her arms around her as she walked over to the Doctor.

"So, we just wait here until that happens?" she said to him.

The Doctor sighed.

"Unless you wanna go walking and collapse somewhere away from here." He said. "I mean, we could try going off and seeing if we could find a nomadic caravan to join up with, but that will be a huge risk."

"I'd rather try that and die out here than go back and get my mind drained and have them dissect you." Rose said.

The Doctor looked up at the sky.

"The question is, will the universe cut me a break for a change and let us run across some nomads." He said to himself.

"I think it's worth a try. It's better than sitting here and just waiting for them to come up and get us." Rose said to him.

The Doctor took her hands.

"The main worry I have with that is subjecting you to the heat. I'm able to deal with temperature extremes better than you can, so I'm not worried about collapsing from the heat, at least not right away. But, with this blazing sun and no water, you won't last long. If we don't find anyone, I'll be sending you to your death."

Rose squeezed his hands.

"I'd rather die in your arms than on an operating table far away from you." She said.

The Doctor stared at her for a moment and then leaned in to kiss her on the lips.

"I'll try to make it easy on you, my angel. We'll go slowly so you won't overexert yourself. Hopefully, we'll find someone soon. If not…"

"Don't think like that, Doctor. We will make it." Rose said to him. "I have faith in you. I know you won't let me die."

The Doctor smiled fondly at her. He put his forehead against hers as they held one another's hands.

"Sometimes I wonder if it had been better if I'd just kept on going after you refused to travel with me the first time." He murmured. "I've risked your life so many times and I almost lost you back at Canary Wharf. Maybe it would have been better if you'd never met me."

"No, Doctor, my life would have been empty and pointless without you. I love you and I'm so glad I met you. I don't regret one single moment. If I do die out here, I still won't have any regrets. You were the best thing that ever happened to me."

The Doctor smiled.

"My thoughts exactly." He said.

He kissed her forehead and his hearts wrenched when he tasted the sweat on her brow. It amazed him that she still loved him after all the times he had been reckless and put her life in danger. He said a silent prayer to any deity who might be listening that they would find help before she died. The thought of being without her made the brain drain seem merciful by comparison.

"Come on, angel, we might as well get started." He said softly.

Rose nodded. She took her hand in his and looked up at him with complete trust. The Doctor kissed her temple and then both she and him forced themselves to walk away into the desert.

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Everyone strapped in?" he asked as he looked around the seat at his team.

Everyone nodded.

"Great, let's go get the TARDIS then." He said.

He looked up through the window at the huge opening above them. After Wormwood surrendered, they glided the ship back to the hangar bay and opened the hangar bay door. He pulled down on the joystick and the craft flew upward. As they went through the door, Jack saw Wormwood, the guards and employees standing about a mile away bundled up against the cold. He had forced them all to evacuate for a very specific reason. He flew up higher until he was several miles above the ground and then he hovered there.

"Bye bye Antarctic Torchwood." He said.

He pressed the black button and watched as a missile flew into the hangar bay and exploded. He turned the ship slightly and shot another missile into the ground beside it. He repeated it a couple more times in other places and when he was satisfied that Torchwood was damaged beyond repair, he activated the cloaking device and flew off towards the TARDIS.

Wormwood glared up at the sky for a moment before he and his employees turned and made their way through the snow and the cold towards the research base.

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"Okay, how are we gonna do this?" Jack muttered as all of them stood around the TARDIS.

He put his hand on the side.

"I suppose we could tip it over and carry it up into the ship." He said to them.

"Are you sure we can do that?" Owen asked.

"Well, yeah, I think we can handle the weight." He said.

"You sure, because if you recall there's a bleedin' spaceship inside here." Owen said. "What if we tip it over and it ends up crushing us?"

"It doesn't work like that. The main part of the ship is in another dimension." Jack explained. "This right here is the only thing that is in this reality. It'll have the same weight as a regular police box."

"And how heavy is a police box, exactly?" Tosh asked.

Jack started at the TARDIS.

"Shouldn't be too heavy. I mean, there are five of us. Surely five of us can carry one police box onto a ship."

"And if we can't manage it?" Ianto asked.

"Well, then everyone's insurance will cover the cost of the chiropractors." Jack replied. "Now, let's get going with this before we freeze to death standing here."

He stared at the TARDIS as he thought about how best to go about it.

"Gwen and Owen, get on the left side of the TARDIS. Ianto and Tosh, the other side. That way we have a man and a woman lifting on either side." He said.

The team nodded. They positioned themselves on the sides of the TARDIS and looked at him expectantly.

"Okay, I guess I'll shove the TARDIS onto its back and pray the outside doesn't get damaged. The Doctor loves this ship more than life itself and I really don't want to face his wrath if something happens to it."

He put his hands on the front doors and planted his feet on the ground. Grunting, he began to push as hard as he could. After a moment, he took a breather and noticed that he didn't even budge it."

"Damn. This is gonna take everyone." He said. "Come around the front with me."

Everyone clustered around Jack and put their hands on the door.

"Ready? 1…2…3!"

Everyone grunted, but they still couldn't budge it.

"Okay, everyone stop." Jack said stepping back.

He sighed as he stared at the TARDIS. Suddenly, an idea came to him and walked back over to the door.

"It's me, TARDIS, let me in." he said to her.

Everyone moved back as the doors swung open. Jack walked inside.

"Okay, I don't know how to fly you," he said staring up at the ceiling. "So, I'm wondering if you can put yourself onto the ship so we don't risk breaking our backs."

The TARDIS grunted.

"Okay, I don't know what that means, but I'm hoping…."

He jerked his head around when the TARDIS doors closed and the rotor began to move up and down.

"Ah, good." Jack said.

He stood by the door. A minute later, the rotor stopped and the ship fell silent. Jack opened the door and smiled when he saw he was inside the ship.

"Thanks for all your help." He said to the TARDIS.

The TARDIS grunted in reply.

Jack stepped outside.

"Now, praying to God the TARDIS didn't go forward in time in the process and I'll step out and see all my friends as decomposing icicles." He muttered.

He walked over to the ramp and went down it. To his relief, he saw that everyone was still alive and standing in the same place.

"Success, guys, the TARDIS is inside." He said to them.

"Why do we need the ship then?" Owen said to him. "If the TARDIS can fly itself why don't we just go in it?"

"Because the TARDIS doesn't have any weapons. If we're gonna put this Sahara Torchwood out of commission, we're gonna need the missiles." He said. "Besides it might come in handy in the future. We could use this and the Doctor could use the TARDIS and we could keep on taking out two Torchwoods at a time. It'll save a lot of time especially if Wormwood is right and there are a ton of Torchwoods left. Now, everybody in, we got friends to save and a facility to destroy."

He stepped aside and let everyone get on. When the last person was in, he stared around at the snow-covered ground for a moment and then walked back inside.

A moment later, the ramp went up and then the ship floated up into the air, turned and made a beeline for the Sahara Desert.


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

Jenkins looked up when he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." he said.

The door opened and a guard walked in.

"Yes,"

It's been a half hour, sir, should we go get the prisoners now?" he asked.

Jenkins thought for a moment.

"Yes, I imagine they've learned their lesson now. Let them in and put them in maximum security until we need them."

"Yes, sir."

The guard went back out the door and closed it as Jenkins went back to his paperwork.

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(Twenty minutes later…)

Another knock on the office door.

"Come in." He said.

He looked up as the same guard came into the room.

"Well, are the captives secure?" he asked.

"No, sir, we can't find them." The guard replied.

Jenkins stared at him.

"What do you mean, you can't find them?" he said.

"We went up to the surface and they're nowhere in sight. We looked for about ten minutes, but we can't find them."

"You can't be serious, we are in the middle of the biggest bloody desert in the world. The two of them can't have gotten away." He said to him. "Look harder! They must be around. I expect after almost an hour both of them are lying somewhere close by near death! Now get out there and find them. And let me make this clear, if I lose them, you lose your job and your memories. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good, now get going."

He sighed angrily as the guard went out and shut the door behind them.

"Surely, Doctor, you aren't that big a fool that you would risk going off looking for help in the middle of the Sahara Desert." He muttered to himself.

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"Wait, I…need to rest again." Rose panted.

The Doctor looked back at her and helped her to the ground. They had been going for nearly an hour and still no sign of life. Rose was becoming weaker by the second and the Doctor realized now how idiotic it had been to go off into the desert without any food or water. And now the woman he loved was suffering for his rashness.

He knelt down beside her and stared at her, concerned, as she looked at the sand in front of her knees. Sweat was pouring off her face like a waterfall and her beautiful, blonde hair was plastered to her head. She was swallowing hard repeatedly trying to force some kind of liquid down her parched throat. Her face was as red as a beet and the Doctor knew it was the beginnings of heat stroke. He felt completely helpless and angry with himself for doing this to her. He had always been somewhat impulsive in his actions, but this incarnation seemed to revel in irresponsibility. He couldn't count the number of times he had flung himself headlong into situations without thinking and now here at last, it had caught up with him. Rose was going to die in his arms and it was all his fault.

_My love, forgive me._ He thought to himself. _Forgive me for doing this to you._

Rose looked at him.

"It's not your fault, Doctor." She said to him.

The Doctor was stunned. Once again, Rose demonstrated the eerie ability to know exactly what he was thinking. She crawled over to him and put her hand on his cheek.

"Don't blame yourself." She said weakly. "I know that's what you're doing. I wanted to do this. It's not your fault."

She eased into his arms and the Doctor wrapped them around her protectively.

"I'm glad I'm here with you." She whispered. "I'm glad the last thing I'll see on Earth is your handsome face."

The Doctor felt a knot form in his throat. He leaned his head down and kissed her cheek, anguish tearing at his hearts when he felt how hot she was. Her cheek was burning up and the Doctor knew it wouldn't be much longer until she passed out from the heat and died. Knowing that every second was precious now, he murmured words of love to her preparing himself to lose the thing that mattered most to him in all the universe. He didn't know if he could go on without his Rosebud beside him. Nothing mattered to him in this life except her and once she was gone, he didn't care what happened to him. All he felt like doing was lying down in the sand and waiting for the heat to kill this life and the lives to come until he was truly deceased and able to be reunited with her for all eternity.

He studied her reddened face, the half closed eyes that stared up at him with love as her life slipped away from her. The sound of her raspy breath escaping from her lips. As her body was shutting down, she had to fight for every breath and the sight of it tore him to pieces. She was so brave. Even when death was at hand, she was still determined to fight for every moment she could get. He watched as her eyes fixed on him and he knew that she was trying to keep to her promise to make him the last thing she saw before she died. He dreaded the moment her eyes would become fixed in the glassy death-like stare. He knew the moment the light faded from her eyes, the light would fade from his soul. It would be a living death and he was glad that he also would soon succumb to the heat and mercifully leave the hollow, empty existence he would soon be living.

He swallowed hard when Rose's breathing became shallow and her eyes slowly closed. Fighting back the tears, he enveloped her in his embrace.

"Don't be afraid, my beloved," he whispered in her ear. "I'm here. I won't let you go. I'll hold you until you are safely in Heaven and then it won't be long until we're reunited again, I promise."

"Doctor." Rose said in a barely audible voice. "I love you."

"I love you too, Rose, with all my hearts." He whispered in her ear.

He leaned back up and held her close to him, stroking her cheek and smoothing away the damp hair from her face. He wondered if anyone would ever find them. They were out in the middle of nowhere and once they died, the sands would slowly drift over them covering their bodies in a sandy grave. He took comfort in the fact that at least they would be together. No matter what happened he would not let go of her. He would die with her in his arms protecting her in death as he had in life. He stared down at her beautiful face losing all sense of his surroundings as he concentrated on his angel.

He became so lost in watching her that he didn't notice a huge shadow creeping across the desert towards him nor did he notice when the shadow enveloped him shrouding him in darkness nor did he notice when a ramp lowered above his head and a familiar face peered down at him.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor started and looked upwards. He frowned in confusion. He was certain he was seeing a heat induced mirage. How else to explain the fact that Jack was staring at him from a Xa'noc scout ship. He stared up at it marveling at how realistic the mirage was. He had seen mirages before but never in such crystal clear clarity.

"Doctor!"

He shook his head and looked closer. No, wait…

"Jack?" he said.

"Yeah!"

The Doctor was taken aback.

"Okay, I seriously doubt that mirages talk back to you." He muttered to himself.

"Doctor, you okay?" Jack said.

The Doctor snapped to his senses.

"Yes, but Rose…"

He glanced down at her, terrified that she might have died in the few moments he had his attention focused on Jack. To his relief, he saw she was hanging on, but only just.

"Rose, she's near death. We have to get her inside." He yelled up to him.

Jack nodded.

"Hang on, we'll land right beside you."

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief and held Rose close as the ramp closed and the ship landed nearby.

"Thank Rassilon." The Doctor murmured, relieved, as he lowered his face to her head.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor kissed Rose's forehead as she lay on the small examination table in the tiny med bay on the ship. He had managed to get her stabilized just in time and now she was resting comfortably. She didn't open her eyes at his ministrations, but he had expected that. It would take some time for her to recover fully from the heat. In the meantime, Jack had flown them a short distance away from the lab just in case someone was out looking for them.

Jack walked into the med bay.

"It's a good thing I got to you two in time." He said.

The Doctor nodded still keeping his eyes focused on Rose. Jack walked up beside her and stared down.

"How is she?" he asked worriedly.

The Doctor looked at him.

"She'll be fine. She had severe heat stroke, but she'll make a full recovery." He said.

Jack frowned. He was using his clinical, detached tone of voice. He suspected it was because he was trying to keep calm and not freak out after almost losing Rose. Not wanting to see his best friend lose it, he decided to change the subject.

"The Torchwood in Antarctica is destroyed," he said. "We used the missiles from this ship and damaged the base beyond repair."

The Doctor smiled.

"Good." He said. "What happened to Wormwood?"

"We didn't kill him, we left him and his staff standing out in the cold." He said hesitantly. "I mean, we don't really like to kill unless it's necessary, you know."

The Doctor nodded.

"I'm the same way. Don't feel bad, Jack, I would have done the same."

"Yeah, but what if they hook up with another lab somewhere?"

The Doctor shrugged.

"Then, we deal with them there. If the man is stupid enough to go to another lab and work there, then he deserves to have his ass kicked twice."

"He could tell others about us."

"Oh, I suspect that's already been done. Torchwood would be foolish not to let the other labs know what we're up to. Nope, it just means we have to be a bit more sneaky from here on out, we no longer will have the element of surprise we enjoyed with the Antarctic lab. We have to keep on our toes every minute."

"So, what are we going to do about this Sahara lab?" Jack asked.

The Doctor thought for a moment.

"My TARDIS is in here?" he asked.

"Yes, why?"

The Doctor smirked.

"I think I will use it to send Jenkins a little ultimatum. After all, it's only fair to warn him and his staff before we start blasting the facility to kingdom come, don't you think?"


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

Jenkins sighed angrily. The guard had just reported back to him and still no sign of the Doctor and Rose.

"You can't have escaped. There's nowhere to run." He muttered to himself. "You have to be somewhere out there. And if you and Rose have died, I swear those guards will suffer."

He leaned forward preparing to concentrate on more paperwork. As he read through a memo, he suddenly became aware of a wheezing sound coming from his left side. He looked over and his mouth dropped open when the TARDIS suddenly materialized in the corner of the room.

"It can't be." He murmured to himself.

The TARDIS stopped wheezing and the door opened. Jenkins got to his feet when he saw the Doctor standing there with a smug grin on his face.

"Hello, I suppose you were wondering what became of Rose and me. Well, it's the strangest thing. My friends from Antarctica showed up and they brought my TARDIS back to me. So, here I am, letting you know I'm alright so you don't have to worry."

His eyes narrowed.

"Or…maybe you do need to worry. Because you see, Rose nearly ended up dying because you decided to play hide and seek with the door and if there's one thing that gets me pissed off, it's watching Rose suffer."

"It's your fault, Doctor, you were the one who decided to go wandering off into the desert."

Jenkins gasped when the Doctor lunged forward and grabbed him by the neck.

"You were the one who decided we needed our minds emptied." He snarled at him. "Like I said before giving the lesser of two evils, I decided to take a chance and escape because I really don't want my memories or Rose's memories falling into evil hands. Despite that, Rose and I were ready to come back inside after we saw there was nowhere to run, but you decided to be cute and hide the door which forced us to go out into the desert in search of help. So, yes, it is your fault. Thankfully, Rose didn't die which is a good thing for you since I would have snapped your neck in retaliation."

"Then, why don't you, Doctor? You have me by the throat. Why not kill me now?" Jenkins said.

"Because despite what you and your lot think, I am not a brutal, murdering, alien monster. I am capable of mercy. I came down here to give you and your staff an ultimatum. Abandon this facility before we blast it to bits and give up working for Torchwood or stay here and die when the explosion comes and the walls collapse."

"Your TARDIS doesn't have the firepower to destroy this facility." Jenkins said.

"No, it doesn't, but the Xa'noc scout ship Jack Harkness is currently piloting has enough firepower to level this place and then some. So, if I were you, I'd start packing up the camels and making your way towards civilization."

"You aren't going to imprison me?"

"Do you want me to?" the Doctor countered.

Jenkins hesitated.

"Because you know, if you want me to take a prison planet, I know a nice one. Volag Nok. Icy little planet. It's so cold the prison is underground because not many people would be able to survive for long in the intense cold. You wanna go there, I'm more than happy to oblige ya."

The Doctor folded his arms across his chest.

"Well, what's it gonna be?" he said.

"You're insane. You really think you and your ragtag band is gonna defeat all of Torchwood?"

"Well, gee, we just put the Torchwood in Antarctica out of commission and we're about to shut this one down so that's two so far for me and my ragtag band. My guess is yes, we are gonna defeat you lot."

"You are endangering the human race by doing this!" Jenkins snarled.

"No, I'm saving the human race from the likes of you!" the Doctor retorted.

"What if you do manage to shut down all of Torchwood? What if alien invades come and there's no one to protect the Earth from them?"

"As I told you before, most aliens are not interested in the Earth. Human beings have messed up the planet and terrorized their own without any outside help. As for the ones that do want to invade, they are few and far between. If they do come, I'm sure I'll be around to help stop them. I have an uncanny knack for showing up just when the Earth needs me most. If I'm not here, I'm confident that humanity will be able to put up a fight and defeat them. You lot did not get where you are today by staying in the trees and hooting at predators. The minute you got down from the branches and started walking upright was the moment you showed the planet you had what it takes to survive. Humans are remarkably resilient despite all your efforts to pollute yourselves and your environment. You will be here long after other alien species have become extinct, trust me. As for these high tech defense systems you are so proud of, all they are doing is inviting trouble. Christmas day is a great example of that. I defeated the Sycorax and commanded them to leave and never come back and they were doing just that when you lot decided to blast them out of the sky. If you had left them alone, they would have gone back to all the warlike aliens and gave them my warning about messing with the Earth. But, because Harriet Jones and Torchwood decided they had to teach the alien scum a so-called lesson, the message was never delivered to the ones who needed to hear it. Not only that but I'm sure the rest of the Sycorax were none to pleased to hear that a backwater planet blew up one of their mother ships and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if they and their allies rallied together in the near future and came right back here to exact revenge. And if they do it will be all your fault, not mine!"

"So, if you get rid of all of us, what will happen to your friends? Will they have to disband too?"

"No, they will be the only Torchwood allowed to exist."

"So, you're playing favorites. You want to get rid of all the Torchwoods that don't employ your best friends!" Jenkins said angrily.

"Yes, I'm allowing Jack's Torchwood to exist precisely because they are my friends. Because, I know them and I trust them. They won't go mucking up the planet like the rest of ya. So there, if aliens invade we have a Torchwood around who will protect the Earth. You can stop worrying now."

"You won't stop us. The other Torchwoods are on alert now and they'll be keeping an eye out for you and your friends."

"I expect they will. But, see, I have ways of avoiding detection. I'm extremely sneaky when I want to be. So, those other Torchwoods better make damn sure they are on their toes because the Oncoming Storm strikes when people least expect it."

He put his hands on Jenkins' desk, leaned forward and looked him in the eyes.

"I'm warning you now, I would think long and hard before I went and joined up with another branch because I will get to you eventually and when I do find ya, I will send you to Volag Nok without a second thought. That goes for your flunkies as well. Leave Torchwood and go find some nice office job where you won't cause any trouble. Because trust me, you don't want to go to Volag Nok."

He leaned back up.

"This is your one and only warning. You have a half hour to get you and your staff out of here before we start bombing the place. So I would move quickly."

He gave him a warning glance as he turned and walked back into the TARDIS. He closed the door behind him and Jenkins watched as the TARDIS dematerialized. Sighing angrily, he turned and picked up his phone. He punched in a two-digit number and waited.

"This is Carl Jenkins." He said when he heard someone pick up. "I'm ordering an evacuation. Start getting everyone as far away from here as they possibly can."

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Jack looked and Ianto looked over as they heard the TARDIS materializing behind them. They walked over as the Doctor stepped outside and closed the door behind them.

"Well?" Jack asked.

"I gave him thirty minutes. And that's what they'll get. Whether or not they are out we start firing precisely in…"

He checked his watch.

"Twenty Eight minutes." He said.

Jack checked his watch.

"Gotcha, twenty eight minutes and we start turning the place into a crater." He replied.

He smiled at the Doctor.

"I am happy to report that while you were down threatening the enemy, Rose recovered a bit. She opened her eyes and asked for you. Tosh and Gwen are in there talking to her now, but I'm sure she'll want to see you."

The Doctor beamed.

"Thanks. I'll see her now. Remember, whether or not they are ready, you will start firing on the compound in…"

He checked his watch.

"Twenty six minutes."

"Yes, sir. " Jack said saluting.

They watched as the Doctor turned and headed towards the med bay before going back and sitting down at the control panel.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor entered the med bay and beamed when he saw Rose sitting up on the exam table taking small sips of water from a cup as Tosh and Gwen chatted with her.

"Doctor." She said softly when she spied him.

The Doctor came forward and embraced her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Much better." She said to him.

Gwen glanced at Tosh.

"We'll leave you two alone." Gwen said to the Doctor.

They quietly exited the room as the Doctor broke the embrace and smiled at her.

"I thought I'd lost ya there for a moment." He said.

"Ah, you can't get rid of me, you shoulda figured that out by now." Rose replied, punching his arm playfully.

The Doctor chuckled and kissed her cheek.

"So, what's going on with the Torchwood?" Rose asked.

"Ah, well they are about to get blown to bits in about…"

The Doctor checked his watch.

"Eighteen minutes. Feel up to watching?"

"Yeah, I think I'm strong enough."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

The Doctor wrapped his arm underneath her arm and helped her to stand up. He gave her a concerned look when she wobbled a moment but she quickly recovered and smiled at him.

"See, I'm a lot tougher than you think." She said.

The Doctor smiled at her proudly.

"Yes, you are." He said. "And now if you'll follow me, I'll lead you to a nice comfy chair where you can watch the fireworks."

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The Doctor sat in the seat by the control panel snuggling with Rose as she sat in his lap. On the other side, Jack was busy firing missiles and laser bolts into the Torchwood facility. Behind him the rest of the Torchwood team watched silently.

"So, I guess Jenkins did take my advice and left?" the Doctor asked him as he continued to fire.

"Well, Ianto and I saw a whole bunch of them leaving the lab about fifteen minutes ago. Whether Jenkins was one of them, I can't say, we've never seen him before."

"Oh, I'm sure the coward was the first out the door." The Doctor replied. "Probably stepped on a few of his lackeys on the way."

He looked at Jack.

"So, two Torchwoods are out of commission now." He said.

"Yup, so where are we headed to next?" Jack asked glancing at him.

"Well, the other location I know about is in the Amazon Jungle. How do you guys feel about trekking through the rainforest?"

"After Antarctica, I'll take anything warm." Jack replied.

"Even here?" the Doctor said gesturing out the window.

"Um…no, not quite this warm." He said.

He finished the bombardment. The Doctor and Rose stood up and looked down at the enormous crater that the missiles left.

"Excellent. I believe our work here is done." The Doctor said slapping his hands together. "Time to move on to the Amazon."

Jack glanced at the others.

"You guys want off now?" he asked them.

Gwen frowned.

"Want off?"

"Yeah, I'm going with the Doctor, but that doesn't mean you have to. I'm giving you a chance to bail out and go back to Cardiff. So anyone who doesn't want to go on to the Amazon, raise your hands now."

The team looked at each other and all of them put their hands behind their back and gave Jack a pointed look. Jack smiled at the Doctor.

"Who says good help is hard to find?" he said.

"Well, I'm glad they're so eager to help because from here on out it's gonna get harder. We have to be prepared and ready for anything so now that we're finished here, let's retire to the TARDIS and plot our next course of action. Then, after a well deserved break, It's on to the Amazon."

He put his arm around Rose and led her towards the TARDIS as Jack and the others followed right behind them.

THE END (To be continued eventually in The Hunt For Torchwood: Amazon.)


End file.
